An Arc's training
by ChilledAaron
Summary: Jaune was aware that he needed training. He wasn't that dense, yet with his options limited: he decides to ask a family friend for help. Unfortunately for him, his mentor seems to have interesting ideas of how to train him. (Image is owned by Pallad). (They draw much better art than I ever can.)
1. Please train me!

**Author's Note: Hi! I felt my first chapter needed a bit of a rework, I don't feel satisfied with what I wrote, so ye.**

 **Here's the revised chapter 1! I merged the initial first 2 chapters into 1.  
**

 **This is my first story. So to new readers, I hope you enjoy! -Aaron**

* * *

It had started simply as a promise, a declaration by a five year old Jaune had made as he watched his oldest sister leave for Beacon. He would become a hero, he had to of course, everyone in his family is a hunter, skipping him sadly, but that wouldn't stop him -not in the slightest!-.

Sure: He didn't have the same early training his sisters had gotten, or improved when his dad tried to train him, but that's besides the point; He had shouted to the world, and to his older sisters that he would become a hero just like the Arcs before him.

He just needed a trainer, someone he could learn from. No matter how many times he had tried to train with another member of the Arc family it had always ended in...he wouldn't say disaster, it was just more disappointing for both sides.

Every time he tried to train with his dad it had always ended with him failing to keep his footwork in order, he had tried as hard as he can before his dad had called an end to their training. That stung a lot, a phone from his big sisters had managed to calm him down a lot thankfully.

Then there was what happened when he asked his mom to help train him...even now their back yard still smelled like apricot...the fruit, not his mom who had the same name of course.

Then there were his sisters…Yeah they were a definite no. He loved all of his sisters, but they were...really over bearing and protective to the point they were really scary if he mentioned becoming a hunter too much.

This didn't leave him with much of a choice, he wasn't sure who else to ask. There was only one other person he knew, a family friend that came by often to visit before venturing off for months to weeks.

* * *

"You want _me_ to train you?" I nodded to her question, as I looked up to her. A sense of embarrassment started to fill me, I did just pull her away from the party to ask her this. It was hard to keep eye contact with her.

She stood tall, donned in her familiar white coat, with a glimpse of her red shirt underneath. I'd never seen her without. They fit her, and I doubted she would change her apparel anytime soon. She gave me a rare emotion i'd never seen on her face before, curiosity? Turning her back on me, I couldn't see what other emotions went through her, blocked by her long and flowing white hair.

"Yeah, I know you tend to be busy for weeks on end, but I figured now that you're back I could train under you. I-if you're able to of course! I know you're busy a lot of the time and I don't really to assume that you're free when you'r-"

"I'll train you." She agreed. _She agreed?_ I didn't expect it to be that easy, but those words of hers prove me otherwise.

"Really?" I could already feel a smile growing on me. "Thanks Alex." I wondered what type of training she'll have ready for me.

"If you're serious about this, be prepared by 6 am tomorrow. Right now: everything is on a need to know basis, got that?" I nodded, she didn't waste time giving me my first order; not that I was complaining, but she didn't hesitate at all.

Did she say 6am?

* * *

Jaune wished he was still in bed, He wished he still had his head resting on his comfy pillow, with the warmth of his blanket still wrapped up around him. Jaune would of still had all of these things, If he didn't ask Alex to help him train.

Jaune would of had the luxury of waking up at 7 instead of 5 am, If he didn't ask his now-mentor to train him, 'to toughen him up in anyway she imagined' to help him for his dream of becoming a hunter. Not that he told her he wanted to be a hunter, as he wanted to keep that a secret until he could get into Beacon.

That happened 30 minutes ago. Jaune at this point was running, he had been for a good 10 minutes or so. His task was simple, capture the red marked flag. This was a beginning challenge his mentor had set up for him, he could approach this anyway he could.

His mentor however, Never included the small -almost minuscule- fact that she would try to stop him. She had already explained, for one: If he got hit by a red paintball, he was immediately 'out'. She of course, was somewhere in the forest as well, as she could be behind any tree, or behind any bush at any moment. And he might not even see her until it was too late.

Something whizzed by his head, as a glance to the right showed him what he dreaded. Red splattered paint.

With that as his indicator, he started to run harder. He knew that she was somewhere on his left, but with only that to work on his options were limited, however.

His mind almost dropped the thoughts entirely as he noticed a clearing up ahead. There stood the red flag.

 _"The flag!"_ he rejoiced, sprinting harder, as he hadn't stopped running since the start, when they were still in the outskirt of town.

He stopped right before he could reach the flag. His hand had already reached out to try and grab it, a few inches from simply ripping it off from the pole, as his fate was sealed when he heard a obvious 'click' and a few leaves being crushed under a foot.

Jaune could only sigh. His mentor had gotten him, a few seconds before he would of won. A mere moment away from having his shirt paint clean and almost shockingly clean of dirt.

Most importantly: He was just a second away from being 'saved' in a sense, from his new mentor. Who had most importantly, promised not to tease him when she wanted. If he had just gotten the flag in time, now he could feel the cold plastic barrel of her paintball gun. hearing a click as she pulled the trigger.

* * *

 **Alek's POV.**

Jaune's first mistake started from the beginning of the 'trial' as I preferred to call it.

His mistake was simple: He took the open dirt road, although easy to run and move on without the hassle of mud or low hidden rocks and bumps that could trip him. This was a trade between movement and visibility, as he was easy to spot and track.

I kept pace with him, carefully switching between glancing at him every so often and keeping my focus on the path I had chosen. It wasn't the best; it also wasn't the worst as most of the ground was flat besides a few but noticeable bumps, nothing impassable as long as my focus didn't slip and fall mostly on him.

" _My footwork was in need of sharpening anyways_ " popped into my head as there was a few minutes before Jaune would reach the actual flag. There were a few ideas of how to prepare that came to mind, what to place and how to 'out' him: I could easily of shot him with the paintball gun from the get-go, or place a few minor traps that would of splattered him with red paint right at the end, I even had the option of simply tackling him to the ground if both my aim and traps fail.

In the end, my option was to go for a variation of shooting him with the paintball gun, instead of shooting him from the start, stripping the idea of 'choice' from him in an instant. It was more...appealing? no... Beneficial, in a way to at least let him get a feel of how most of his training will be like. -assuming I don't exhaust myself out first-.

My thoughts died down as my hands rose, carrying the paintball gun, firing a single red paintball next to his head.

It missed of course, my aim wasn't focused on hitting him dead on yet.

He was close, at least a few inches away from reaching the flag before I was right behind him, the barrel touching his back as he froze up.

In return I smiled as he sighed, he wasn't going to get out of this easily.

I spoke up as I removed my helmet "It seems we'll be training my way" I tried to not add in a bit of glee at the end, but at that moment. It was a bit difficult.

* * *

 **Feel free to leave a review and I hope you enjoyed!**


	2. Stains

**Author note: Can't really update my fanfic regularly,(Yay Scheduling!) Sorry about that. Here's some Expo to carry the story on a bit more**

* * *

Jaune had tried desperately to get the stain off his favorite jacket to no avail

"I said i was sorry" She apologized taking off her helmet, letting her hair silver hair drop down from it's confined space, walking towards him, being around his height if not a few inches shorter as they naturally established eye contact with each other.

Her eyes lowered their stare at the shirt in question, the red paint stood there no matter the effort Jaune had put into trying to get it off.

"I just washed this as well" He said, examining the size of the splatter on his shirt.

"Hmm, Follow me. We can wash the shirt at my place, I was planning to do laundry day after we got this done"

"Right, um" He stopped, causing her to turn to him.

"Where...is your house exactly? I haven't actually been there...Yet" Jaune inwardly flinched after having added that last part unnecessarily.

"It's a bit close to town, not far from your house anyways. It's not the most grandest of places anyways. But...It's nice to know you've been planning on trying to visit me.I also have some spare clothes that will suit you"

* * *

"H-hey Alex? Why is it so cold here?" He asked,entering her home first as she looked at him for a moment.

"Hmm? It's not really _that_ cold... Is it?" As she had taken off her white jacket as soon as she entered the home, being almost immune to the artificial cold climate. Bringing into the question: Just where did she come from?

"Here" His thoughts were interrupted as she handed him a jacket with a cute rabbit on it's front.

"Hand me your shirt" He stopped as he looked at her.

"I...Can do it myself-" He responded as he tried get up, before being promptly pushed down by her foot, as she lowered her hand towards him with an open palm.

"You're in my care, atleast allow me to clean the mess I made" She stated, giving 0 time for him to make up an excuse. Inciting a nod from the silent Jaune, as he handed her his shirt.

"Uh. Can you take your foot off my chest?" He asked, trying not to make it sound like he was pleading her. Causing her to cross her arms,

"Hmm...No, in fact you seem to have a great view down there"

Jaune paused, his hands still gripping her leg, before his vision slowly drifted from her leg. Before Alex knew it, she had a fully red Jaune right under her foot. In that moment, giving the blushing knight the jacket wasn't on her priority.


	3. A bit more expo

**Author's Note: A continuation of chapter 3: Expo**

* * *

After a few minutes, Jaune was finally able to get back up again as Alex gave him the jacket, and the remote to the tv. The jacket itself was black and short-sleeved, the inside being an orange color.

The jacket itself was the most comfortable thing in existence, in Jaune's opinion that is. As he placed it on, he finally felt some warmth in this cold place.

In the background a mechanical sound started to hum constantly as a door closed, deafening the sound as Alex walked back towards him.

"Right, How's the jacket?" She asked, noticing he seemed extremely comfortable with the rabbit logo jacket.

"It's great, where did you get this?" As he noticed Alex behind the island counter as she filled two cups with two clear but different drinks, before heading back to the couch he sat on.

"Well, It's actually my gift for you. Your birth day is upcoming in a few weeks or so, And now is probably the best chance I will have to give you it" as she gave him his cup.

"...Isn't it a bit too early to drink?" Jaune asked as he tried to find a clock before seeing a digital one: 12 pm.

"Hmm? Of course not. Besides, as much as I would love to drink until I am drunk, I'll pass. I don't have enough to get both of us wasted anyways"

"But I don't drink" Alex nods as she finished her drink.

"For now, Your mom will kill me if I did get you drunk. Though just wait until you're 18th birth day"

"Alright." He responded as he wondered what she might have planned.

"So...What type of training will I get anyways?" Alex stopped for a moment before getting up and heading into another room.

After a few minutes she came back, Assault rifle in hand causing Jaune to pause for a second before looking back at it.

"...You're not going to shoot at me with that, right?" Jaune hesitantly asked, obviously concerned about his well being.

"Of course not, I don't want to scare you off this soon. Also, This will be your training rifle" as she places it down on the table, taking out the ammo clip, and the bullet already in it's barrel.

"Wait! Y-you want me to have this?" Jaune said as he tried to make her pause for a moment, though she continued to disassemble the rifle.

"Of course, "

"Oh uh..." This time Alex did pause as she looked up at him and asked

"Was there another weapon you were interested in?"

"It's not that, it's just...I never actually planned out what I should actually use as a weapon" Jaune stated as he examines the different parts and pieces that were now laid out on the table.

"Hmm...If anything, The only weapon I can teach you is the gun. More specifically, How to use this rifle right in front of you. It has 0 dust involved in it's creation at all. No dust bullets, No add-on with dust. Just pure engineering beauty" Alex had stated with pride, as she had placed the one bullet infront of the body of the gun.

"Whoa" Jaune replied, picking up the bullet.

"Who makes the bullets?" Although Jaune didn't know much of the weapon infront of him. Someone must be making ammo made for it, as Alex smiled.

"Now that's a Sava's family secret."

"You're last name is Sava?" Jaune asked with curiosity, inciting a nod from Alex.

"Enough questions about my name though. Let's start assembling your new rifle"


	4. Some coffee?

**Author's note: So, since it's was just recently new years, Why not start off the year with a new chapter?, side note: Finally a chapter that's decently long, yay.**

* * *

The kick back from the rifle was strong, as the sound of gunfire echoed through the forest, repeating in an almost constant pattern.

"Your aim is decent" She says softly to him. Jaune somehow managing to hear it through his ear protectors, he nodded, not saying much as he didn't really know what to say right now.

Alex meanwhile, helped Jaune up as their training was coming to an end early today.

"Huh? Hey why are we stopping early?" Jaune asked as he took off the goggles, as Alex placed her white jacket on.

"It's new years, isn't it?" Jaune nodded as the thought came into his mind, being a bit embarrassed he forgot of such a eventful day.

"Oh, What's the-" Alex had already cut him off, as she stared at her watch.

"11am" She gestures to him to follow her, as Jaune of course, followed.

"We can get some coffee, Decaf?" She asked as they soon managed to make it back to her house.

"...Caffeinated" Alex turned to him, making a simple 'hmm?' sound.

"Alright, I'll get some ready" Jaune nodded as he walked into the laundry room.

* * *

The smell of brewed coffee soon entered it's way into the laundry room, right as Jaune opened the door.

To him, it smelled calming, It always did remind him of his family. Maybe being a hunter tends to make you love the stuff. He was sure that his sisters loved the stuff because of their choice of work. If he was going to become a hunter, he'll have to love coffee just as much as his family seemed to love it.

Alex sat on one of the 3 counter stools in the kitchen/dinning table, as she had left him a cup of coffee, as she drank her own cup.

"Thanks" He said, taking a seat as well, looking down at the coffee, Black. The cup itself placed right next to a few sugar cube blocks.

He lifted up his warm cup, as he drank a bit of it.

He stopped for a microsecond, as he visibly froze up, before lowering the cup down and swallowing the coffee already in his mouth. He had tasted coffee before, he secretly drank some during his 11th birth day after all. Though it wasn't _caffeinated_.

The taste wasn't something he enjoyed. He didn't hate it entirely, though he knew he wouldn't enjoy it fully in it's current state.

" _I need to get used to this_ " He thought to himself, as he breathed in and out, staring at the cup for a second. before gripping the mug's handle again, lifting it up towards his mouth. For a second attempt to getting used to the taste.

Only to have Alex grab his hand before he lifted it up.

"What's wrong" her voice sounded stern and as an order rather then a question.

"I'm fine..." He tried to muster up his voice fully, as his throat slightly burned a bit, still not fully cooled down yet.

"You've never wanted caffeinated before, you didn't even put any sugar"Her free hand lowering down the half empty cup of hers on the table, it was a bit lighter color then what she usually drank

A few minutes passed in between both of them, Alex's grip didn't loosen up.

"I." He took a pause before continuing

"Want to get used to everything my family enjoys as hunters" He looked up at her.

She stared back, as she chose her words carefully.

"Jaune. Does anyone in your family drink coffee without adding anything in it?, just leaving it as the roast itself" She kept her gaze even with his.

"No, but-"

"You want to prove to your family you can be a hunter, aren't you?"

Jaune didn't respond back to her, What she said was true.

"Who is it?" This time she asked with a bit more softness to her voice, her grip loosening up to simply her resting her hand on his hand.

"Well...It's my sisters, You already know how they feel about me planning to become a hunter, or at least a hunter in training...Last night, Aurelia pleaded with me to 'stop trying before i get myself killed'" He confessed to Alex, receiving a nod from her.

"Did she say anything about your training?" Jaune nodded again.

"The first time I told her, she looked extremely concerned, I'm not sure about which part of the training though. I _barely_ managed to convince her to let me train with you a bit longer"

"How long did she give you?" Alex asked him, as soon as he told her.

"Until new years" her hand twitched for a moment.

"So it's today" Although she knew what she heard perfectly, she wanted him to repeat it again.

"Yeah, it is. I didn't want to tell you in the middle of our training"

"If you think this really isn't cut out for you, then I wont stop you Jaune. Your family does have the right to be concerned about you trying to become a hunter. It's hard work" Jaune looked back at her, as she nods again.

"Being a hunter means a lot of things; it means protecting the people you love, the people around you and most importantly. It's the to protect what is right against people and things that want to destroy it" he smiled at that, it was everything he wanted to be as a hunter, everything he wanted to be as an Arc.

"It also means burden, hardship, struggle. Your sisters are correct in their concerns, there will be many sleepless nights, many decisions that will haunt you, No matter how hard I train you Jaune, no matter how desensitized you could become. The worst part of all of it is coming to accept that your friends may not come back from their mission, even if they come back. There's no way of knowing if they'll come back the same person" his eyes lowered themselves a bit, she was holding his hand that was on the table.

"Even when I agree to train you, I still hope that you wont have to use this training" she finally told to him, her amber eyes searching for what he'll say next.

"But you still trained me!" for a moment, he felt a bit of confusion and anger, she didn't say anything else from week to week of training.

"As a soldier" he froze up the moment she said those words.

"What?" he asked, as he didn't meet her eyes. They shifted focused on her jacket, on what he remembered about her.

"I trained you as a soldier, I trained you, similar to how a student in Atlas academy would be taught and trained. What I've done was train you in harsh conditions, teach you a minor part of what your job is." she paused for a moment before letting her final words sink in.

"Being a soldier and being a hunter will feel the exact same at times. I'm not a huntress, Jaune. I never was one"

Silence once again filled the room all around them, making everything seem like it hasn't moved in god knows how long. It almost felt like a monumental challenge to say anything right now in it's own act.

Jaune's mind raced, he knew he had to tell her. He couldn't hide it, even after what she had said. It was amazing he wasn't panicking as much as he thought he would of been.

"Alex. I uh...Already sent a transcript to beacon" He winched.

"You what?!" This was the first time he had ever heard Alex scream like that.


	5. New years! (1)

**Author's note: Didn't expect to put this much text into one chapter, though I don't mind. (It has 1/3rd of the total text count for the other 5 chapters, combined)**

 **Response, Fantasy OH YEA: For Alex's appearance, I took HEAVY inspiration from Gangut (Kantai Collection), I'm planning to add a few but distinct changes in her appearance, but overall that's basically how she looks like.**

* * *

"Right" Alex said, taking a pause before continuing on.

"You. _SENT_ , a script to Beacon?" Jaune nodded. As he tried tried to figure out the perfect way to word it out.

He nodded; concluding that would be the best way to voice it. Even if it wasn't vocally.

"Right...What was your _exact_ reason for sending in the transcript at this point in time" Her sentence was deliberately slowed down and emphasized.

"Well...My dad was the one who actually sent it. I just filled out a spare document I managed to get a hold of" Both of them knew he was telling the truth.

"How did you get the papers?" Alex's mind began to think of multiple situations. Maybe, he managed to a pay for a forged transcript that described his skills as 'Beacon Worthy', Maybe he managed to get into her office and find one of those empty transcripts through sheer luck. The latter in honesty: Alarmed her. What did he find? It wasn't _impossible_ after all, just unlikely.

"Oh that, I was cleaning around the house and happened to find this in an old box. I think my mom left it in there, I checked it out. It still seems to be similar enough to match the others"It calmed her down a bit, her mind was thankfully was wrong. Jaune wouldn't do that anyways.

"This is a _BIG_ change of pace. I'll need time to think of what to change. What we'll have to remove and what we'll have add onto your training regiment" She had already gotten up from her seat, grabbing her empty cup of coffee, letting Jaune finish his now sweetened coffee.

"I don't have anything else planned for today" She said, placing the cups in the sink for later cleaning.

"Really?, I would atleast expect you to have some parties, maybe some invitations at least by some of your friends out to somewhere to celebrate today" Jaune replied back, confused as to why this was the case.

"Well, It's been a while since I have gotten an invitation from anyone to celebrate the new years" She admitted, before she closed her eyes, counting down: 3,2,1.

"You can celebrate with us!" That made her smile, partly because it took her focus off the sizeable amount of work she will need to change completely. Though the other reason was more fun to watch.

"Thank you Jaune, but I am a bit worried" He looked back at her.

"Are you trying to get a kiss from me by the end of this?" Jaune, being the reasonable teenager he was: soon turned into a embarrassed mess.

"Wha-! I-I just want to invite you to my family's party!" Jaune shouted in defense, losing most of his seriousness in his voice in the stuttering.

"You didn't say no" She noted.

* * *

The front door of the Arc house soon opened then closed shortly afterwards, leading to the 2nd oldest daughter of the Arc resident turning towards the door from the living room couch.

"Hey Jaune, hey Alex" She stopped for a moment, noticing Alex also standing there.

"Nice to see you too, Jasmine" Alex responded back cordially.

"Hey did dad already start barbecuing already?" Jaune asked, noticing the peculiar smell of steak cooking in the back.

"Yeah, they want to get that out of the way before we set up the movie" She sat up properly. Looking at Alex.

"Oh yeah, I invited Alex to enjoy the new years with us" Jaune replied back, noticing at least how Jasmine looked at her, though he couldn't fully tell what was her opinion towards her. It didn't seem like a glare atleast.

"Think I should see your parents first, I don't think they expected me to join in" Jaune nodded as Alex walked through the back sliding door.

Jaune sat down, enjoying the comfort the couch gave.

"You do know this might be a bad idea, right?" Jasmine nonchalantly asked, glancing at Jaune.

"It's not like they hate each other" Jaune replied back, knowing a bit inside that he would had to deal with this.

"They don't, but you know how dead set Aurelia is on trying to make you think twice on becoming a hunter." Jaune was fully aware as he nodded.

"Well...Dad already sent my documents to Beacon already and...I got accepted" Jasmine paused for a moment, as she looked towards Jaune.

"Really? Wait, how?" Her attention instantly switching to her younger brother. Jaune shrugged

"I...don't really know, I just wrote I was training under Alex, my age, what I specialized in or at least what Alex thought I was good at, and my name." He noticed as he finished the sentence, Jasmine looking straight at him with a deadpan.

"And you got in just like that?" She asked.

"Yeah, We got the message after a few days, why is something wrong?" He asked a bit concerned, wondering if he was meant to write down a bit more, there were a few more things he could of written in: His height, hair type and all of that. Though a decent amount of it didn't seem to be applicable to him.

"That's...You didn't even put any type of training school?" She asked again, a bit more concerned.

"Hmm...No I didn't fill that part in" Now he was really worried.

"...Hey Jaune, how much do you know of Alex?" Jasmine didn't pay much attention to it at first, though this just raised her suspicions.

"Well...Not much really, I kind of been a bit distracted with the training to ask her much" Jasmine would of guessed as much.

"You didn't notice anything you would ask her about?" She asked, Jaune shook her head.

"There's a lot of things i would want to ask her" He replied back, before continuing on.

"It's like what I said: I didn't think the time was right to ask her. Especially since I was busy with the Aurelia thing" Jasmine nodded.

"Well...I do want to ask her about her accent" He confessed, being a bit interested in it.

"She does have an interesting way of saying things" Jasmine agreed.

Before they could continue the conversation, the sound of the front door opened, followed by footsteps, Jasmine and Jaune both knew who it was even without turning their heads.

"We're back" Aurelia said loudly, smiling as she noticed her younger brother; heading over to him right after placing the grocery bags on the table.

"Hey Relia" Jaune gave a small wave, using his nickname for her.

"We managed to buy the steak you and dad really wanted to cook" She said, noticing the smile on her face. Obviously loving how much she could help brighten up his mood, Jasmine sweat dropped at this, as usual.

The sound of laughter came from the soon opened sliding door, as everyone in the room knew from the boisterous voice, it was their one and only dad, Alex joined in the laughter as she continued on.

"So in order to retreat, we had to melt down the frozen candy and patch up the broken parts of the engine with it" Alex replied back, as she was the first to walk through, catching Aurelia's attention immediately.

Alex kept her smile, as Jaune's dad also had a friendly smile on.

"So Alex, how's Jaune's training going?" his father asked him, Jaune was certain he said this just to let Aurelia listen on what exactly she had planned.

"It's going well, Jaune in all parts seems to be able to manage what I throw at him so far" Alex replied back, omitting the small chances she takes to tease him or at least just get some sort of embarrassed reaction from him.

"She doesn't make it easy, every day is the same routine: Jog, weapon cleaning, studying different topics. The repetition gets to you" Jaune complained, not sure what was more worse, Weapon maintenance or Jogging.

"It's not meant to be fun. Though I will agree with you, training does tend to become boring after a while. But you and I both know I can't only train you into using the rifle and gloss over everything else" Jaune was aware, Alex had gotten that statement into his head by week 1.

"You mentioned something about cutting a few things out of my training, what are you planning to remove?" Jaune asked, curious as to what he wont get to experience.

"Oh, that? Well. One thing we can happily agree on removing is underwater training" Alex replied.

"Really?, I always thought scuba diving would be enjoyable" his mind thinking of him diving underwater and enjoying the view down beneath the waves.

"If we kept it, you would have to be learn how to keep your calm when fully submerged in freezing cold water" Jaune's mind switched from the cool coral reef area in his imagination to the cold he had only felt from her house.

"On second thought, you're right" Jaune agreed, freezing on comfortable land was one thing, experiencing freezing cold conditions underwater? That would be something he would willingly remove from her list of things to teach him.

"What do you teach him?" Aurelia this time asked, Alex payed attention to her.

"Well, there's not much I didn't mention before. What do you want to know of?" The conversation between Alex and Aurelia made Jaune feel a bit awkward. How exactly will he tell her about Beacon?

"What type of weapons do you teach him to use?" Aurelia was blunt, to a point at least.

"She taught me how to use a rifle and a knife" Jaune spoke up instead.

"Right, I'll have to leave you guys to your talking, the grill needs someone to man it" Altan stood up, stretching as he heads out into the backyard, letting his kids and Alex talk in between themselves. Closing the sliding door behind him.

" _Dammit dad_ " he inwardly said to himself. Now afraid as to what might happen between the two.


	6. New years! (2)

**Author's note: After rewritting it after a while this is draft I think is good enough to post, enjoy reading it**

 **Feel free to leave a review if you want.**

* * *

I stepped out of the living room and into the backyard, letting Alex and Aurelia talk to each other.

The smell of BBQ was stronger now, as I could determine almost everything being cooked from smell alone, Steak, Chicken, and...Something else I've never encountered before, making the wonder of what it will be grow even more.

"Jaune, mind taking the grill for a moment?" came the, I already knew it was my dad the moment he could of finished his first word.

"Alright" I simply said, taking his place as I took the liberty of examining the food on the grill.

Half of the grill was occupied by some type of chicken while the other half was more diverse. Various different cuts of beefs, most of which I could recognize, the other was a bit different then what we'd usually grill.

"Hey dad, what are these?" I was certain he'd expected me to ask.

"You can ask your girlfriend" he simply replied.

"Alright I'll- She is not my girlfriend!" I yelled back, barely catching what he said with how normally he said it.

"We can hear you through the kitchen window, you know" Alex commented, walking through the sliding door.

"So who's the lucky girl?" She asked, noticing my dad's smiling for a moment before restraining it.

"No one, It's no one, but um. What's the name of these?" I asked, trying to change the topic as I gestured towards the BBQ in the making.

"Oh that?, It's called Kalbi, I tried it a while ago at a restaurant, you would enjoy it" She promised.

I nodded, naturally trusting her promise. It was rare to actually see any of her promises fail, the last time her promise didn't come true happened when she said she'd be back from a journey within a few weeks, as it took months instead before she finally made it back home.

That was something I would have to ask her about, there were times when she did had to go somewhere, though she never specified where, or even why. Some times she just left out of nowhere then reappear a few weeks later.

She hasn't done anything like that for a few months now, not since I asked her to help train me at least.

"Flip that one over" Alex said, breaking through my thoughts.

I nodded and flipped the meat in question, almost not catching what she had said.

"So" I said

"Hmm?" She responded

"How did talking to Aurelia work out?" knowing that their conversation had only lasted for about 5 minutes at best.

"Your mom asked her to and your other sisters to help prepare the other food, I'm certain that if anything, she's trying to figure out how much danger I put you through"

"Yeah...She is Aurelia, after all" I replied, knowing fully well how she would react if anyone of us told her

"You still haven't told her yet as well" She noted.

"Oh that, Well...I was going to tell her when we were alone" out of the corner of my eye, I could almost see Alex reacting to that subtly, most likely finding one way to comment about it. Though she must of held herself back from saying it.

"You can't tell her right before you leave" She pointed out.

"True, though I'm not sure when I _should_ tell her" I admitted.

Alex nodded, as she must of switched into a sort of 'thinking' mode she usually enters into.

"Before the New Years start, that is a good place to start off with telling her" Alex said, stopping herself for a moment to think it out again as she said it, before agreeing with what she said.

"So...today?" I didn't ask her to restate what she said.

"It's one way to start the new years at least" She mused to herself.

This time my dad was the one to speak up.

"You should tell her before movie night, I'll take over the grill" He said, resuming his cooking.

A pair of hands held my shoulder, It had to be Alex as I could hear her behind me.

"I'll start the conversation between the both of you, Your sister will want to talk to me after this anyways"

"Don't you mean fight?" I blandly said.

Alex stepped ahead and opened the door.

"After you"

"Thanks" I said, heading in.

* * *

I was suddenly hugged by about 5 of my sisters, all of them simultaneously shouting "Happy new years!". They tended to be enthusiastic about most holidays.

"Happy new years" I responded back with cheer, though not reaching the same enthusiasm as they can reach.

"Hey Jaune, next time it's new years we should head back to Anima, that village we visited last year was amazing" one of the few sisters that was actually younger than him, said with a bit of energy he wish he could have.

"Well...We'll see, for now we can celebrate in the comfort of our house, you can even tell Alex all of your 'conquests' at the buffets we've been to" Apricot's eyes practically shined, before practically pouncing on Alex, telling her all of the cuisine they had managed to taste and enjoy.

That should buy me some time, as I walked into the kitchen as there were 3 people there.

"Hey Jaune" my two sisters greeted me, while mom was too busy battling the literal mountain of uncooked food she was preparing for us, while Aurelia and Saffron were dealing with a more lesser version of the mountain, slicing their targets into precise sizes and pieces.

"Hey...Aurelia can you come with me for a moment?" I asked, trying to get this over with.

"Sorry Jaune, i'm a bit busy to leave this station...but you can tell me if you want" she said, noticing another few uncut foodstuffs being stacked up in a pile to be prepared.

"Oh, No I can wait until you're done" I tried to interject.

"We won't be done for another hour or so, so you should probably just tell me right now" She responded, cutting through what she could with all the skills of a prodigy huntress.

"I...Is this really a good time to tell you?" I asked, I started to feel a bit nervous.

"I always have time to listen to you" She nonchalantly said, finishing up another cut.

"Alright" I stopped for a moment to take a deep breath, then another just for good luck.

"I...got accepted into Beacon" I said as quick as I could, though I wasn't able to keep my voice fully down, even with the sounds of chopping going on, I could hear Aurelia's blade hitting the cutting board with a decent amount of force as it slightly echoed throughout the room.

"You...got into beacon?" She asked, normally, as she took her knife out of the cutting board, before turning towards me, blade in hand.

Saffron was also staring at me.

"Let's take a break, dear" Mom said to Saffron as they left the room, I wondered if they planned this without me knowing.

"How...Did you managed to get into beacon?" She asked, confused as she stared at me.

"I sent the-" I was cutoff.

"No one just gets in because they sent their documents, there has to be something else that happened!" She had managed to switch from her calm posture to one of fury.

"Well...I managed to find an old document I just wrote on. Dad sent it in afterwards and- It got accepted" I said, a bit sheepishly.

"This shouldn't happen, no this can't happen" She mumbled to herself before saying it a bit louder.

"Aurelia..." I couldn't come up with any words to say before she started to speak again.

"No!" She said, pointing the blade at me. "Jaune, this can't happen, you can't go to beacon..."

"Aurelia please...put the knife down" I said, changing the topic to the weapon in her hand, making sure I could take to her without it making the situation worse.

"You can't go, You aren't ready, you don't need to go just to continue on the line of hunter Arcs you're so proud about, You haven't even taken training in any beginner schools. The only experience you had was a bit of routine drills with Alex, but those won't get you far in your dream" She sounded hysterical as she told me everything, waving the knife around a bit as she tried to get her message across.

"Where is the Jaune that was okay with living his life without the need of trying to become a grand knight, where is the Jaune I remember telling stories to and watching over to make sure he could enjoy a normal kids life of fun and adventure. You're so focused on your goal to not see how much your family doesn't want you to do this! Who is it that made you want to be a hunter, Jaune?" I didn't know how to say it, though this was my best bet.

"It's Alex, isn't it?" She asked me as I stopped for a moment, I knew she would hate her more even if I didn't say it. She must of been in her own world right now as she stared at me, trying to find any change in my expression to give it away.

"No!..."I shouted this time, breaking her focus as she focused on me silently again.

"I didn't do this just because of Alex, I asked her for help because I wanted to try and become a hunter so I can make you proud, I want to make all of you guys proud, you're all going to be hunters but I'm not, no one even asked me if I wanted to be trained, you guys just pat my head and send me off somewhere to do my own thing, Aurelia...I know you're worried that I'll get hurt, but I want to do this" I tried to calmly tell her, though I wasn't sure how well it came out.

Aurelia was silent, I couldn't read her emotions besides the frown she had.

"There's many ways you can make us proud without having to become a hunter, you know" She tried to reason with me.

"I know there is, but I don't want to be the only one who doesn't become a hunter because everyone doesn't want me to, It's why I asked Alex in the first place, she was the only one who would give me a chance to show myself instead of telling me in a gentle way as to why I couldn't do it, Once I finally had the ambition to tell her, she must of managed to convince to tell me parents to give me a chance or something...She was even going to help me try to talk to you about this, but I wanted to do this alone so you could see I want this on my own and that she wasn't trying to force me to do this" we didn't break eye contact throughout all of this it.

"You changed a lot after training with her, haven't you?" She didn't sound mad anymore, just observant.

"Yeah, she really helped me with that" I replied, humble about having her teach me-even if it wasn't originally meant to be in the form of a hunter.

"Well...You're an Arc, and my brother and I know how it's hard to change our minds when something happens, but I need to tell...I don't trust Ozpin, no matter what happens, I don't trust him, he...I'm not sure how to describe him, but it's almost as if he's constantly planning for something. Whatever it is for I don't know, that's why i'm worried." She told me, somehow switching between emotions within the time span of 30 minutes.

I nodded as I did my best to memorize that.

* * *

The door soon opened as our mom and Saffron entered, before I could react, Saffron hugged me leaving me a bit confused, before I understood that the rest of my family must of heard us, the kitchen was right next to the living room and dinning room, the room itself was only separated by thin walls.

I didn't have to ask her anyways, I wasn't being quiet at all, I didn't have to ask why, I already knew what she meant by it.

"Alright, that's enough hugging for now, I don't want to distract you guys too much from finishing up" noticing the impressive mountain that was the food they were planning to eat together as a family.

"Don't be too modest, we always have time for you" Saffron responded, as they resumed their jobs.

For a moment, I felt like I was finally making my own way in life, even if it was with help from all of them.


	7. New Years! (3)

**Authors Note: Hope you guys enjoy this chapter**

* * *

The movie itself was decent, Alex had picked it out using her account. I was surprised with the movie choice she made, a daughter secretly taking the place of her father who was going to be conscripted into the army once again. It was enjoyable to watch at least, though I couldn't be fully sure if she chose this intentionally or not.

Alex was the last one to get up from the couch, stretching and yawning, placing her white jacket back on at the same time as it hanged off her shoulders.

"Enjoyed the movie?" she noted, picking up the plate she had, placing it in the dish washer

"Not as much as my sisters" remembering how focused all of my sisters were as they watched the main character train to be a soldier.

"Your sisters _loved_ it" was all she commented about the sheer affection they must of had for the movie after watching it more and more.

"I wonder why" I added, trying to make my sarcasm sound as obvious as I could.

"Maybe it's because their brother loved it" I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case for some of them/

"It has to be something else, even my- Oh...You could be right" It might be a partial reason why, the movie itself was still good at least.

"I should head home" Alex said, taking note of the time on her scroll.

"You should stay here for the night, It's too late head out" My mom's voice called out.

Alex stopped for a moment as she was right about to say something. "You're right, I'll stay here for the night, so where's the guest room?"

"Oh, dad turned the guest room into a man cave for him and Jaune" Aurelia answered.

"You planned this, didn't you?" She asked my dad, as he shrugs "We had an empty room no one was using, I thought it would make an excellent place to relax"

She turned towards me, as I we both already knew who she chose to stay with for the night.

* * *

 **[Alex POV]**

Jaune's room was spacious, that wasn't a real surprise seeing as the Arc resident was a respectable mansion in of itself, still it was quite spacious, for a teenager's room, along with the fact everything was neat and well organized besides the small pile of laundry on the ground.

"Sorry" He started, as he grabbed the small mound of dirty clothes "I forgot to place these in the laundry room, i'll be back after I brush" he said a bit sheepishly as he rushed down the hall, probably running as he realized how late in the evening it was.

Looking around the room showed how much Jaune loved to decorate the walls and his desk with pictures and souvenirs. One souvenir caught my eye as I picked it up to examine it better. The souvenir was a small badge with a golden star and green laurel underneath, small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, I had gave it to him as I came back home a few months ago, he had cherished it like all gifts like that, no matter how insignificant it seems.

The desk had a few other things on it, mostly pictures of him and his family going out to travel and visiting beautiful scenery.

 _"Hold on"_ I had almost missed it, he had left his scroll on the table as well as I picked it up. Opening it showed his contact list and everyone he had messaged.

 _"Couldn't be that bad"_ I mentally said, scrolling through the list as I waited for him.

The first thing to catch my eye was a peculiar name, Sofia was her name, it was different from the regular name conventions. It had been a while since I've seen someone with the name Sofia. It opened into a chat log

* * *

 **[Jaune's POV]**

"I'm back" I called out, closing the door behind me as I looked back at Alex, who had my scroll in her hand-

"Welcome back" She calmly greeted, calmly tapping a few things on the transparent screen.

"Wait, Alex give me my phone!" I had somewhat shouted, as I rushed over towards her. "what are you doing?!" As she had managed to hold me back with her foot, facing the camera part of the scroll towards me.

"Who's Sofia?" She asked, amused by how much I was struggling to try to grab my scroll, it was within reach if I could just-reach a bit further. I tried to pounce towards her, trying to reach a few more inches towards my scroll. It worked at least as i managed to get past her legs,

"Just give me my phone back" I tried to request, meanwhile still trying in vain to grab the scroll, wrestling for control of it, getting on top of her to try to gain some sort of advantage.

The door soon opened, revealing the face as Aurelia as we both stopped dead in our actions. "Mom managed to find an extra pillow for Alex, though we couldn't find an extra blan-" She soon froze as she looked at the see in front of her, as she can see her brother on top of Alex, meanwhile Alex had managed to lock me in place by holding me in position with her legs.

"W-wait, Aurelia, it's not what it looks like" I tried to say to her, it's what everyone says when they were caught in a situation like this, I just hoped that it would work this time, unlike on tv.

"..." She stepped back and closed the door, leaving the pillow on the desk before she left.

"...That's not good" I could only say, before I noticed how incriminating our position was, as I had managed to get past her initial defense, and onto a position where I could actually try to reach for it, though I had now been on top of her, while she in return had locked me in place by wrapping her legs around me as I couldn't move as much as I wanted to.

"It's nothing you can't fix" She commented, as she reached her arm out, as we could both hear a soft click, as she gave it back to me, switching it to the gallery part of the camera.

"What am I going to tell Aurelia?" I asked, still easily remembering her blank expression as she left.

"You can explain to her in the morning" Was the only thing she replied as she laid down on his bed.

"I can try to explain it to her right now"

"You could, though It is late in the night now, and you want to keep your sleep schedule right?" She asked.

"I do, but-" She interrupted me

"Shh" placing a finger against my lips. "She cares for you a rather _interesting_ amount, she'll be fully awake and willing to listen to you tomorrow, besides. You tend to get yourself into more awkward situations than this one."

"Please don't bring up the water park incident" I could only say after shivering from remembering.

Alex laid back on the pillow, while I tried to make room for myself a bit to the side, at least having a decent size bed to fit both of us as I manage to find a decent spot to lay on.

"So, who's Sofia?" She looks towards me, as she was amused by my reaction.

"She's someone I play with, she comes over to play on the console" I gestured towards the black console box she had gifted me.

"Gamer buddies?" I nodded.

"We met in school a while back, though we only started to play a few games together recently when one of my sisters invited her over, I just invited her to play a few games with me" I summarized.

"Well, that sounds nice" She commented, as she turns off the lamp light.

The room grew silent as soon as the light had also faded from it. While the coldness of the room seemed to rise, as I lifted up my comfy blanket in return.

"Still not used to the cold?" She asks.

"Your house feels like the Artic, how do you pay for your electric bill?" The thought of it made this night's cold a bit more bearable at least.

"I'm a _big_ fan of solar panels" she answered with joy.

She soon joined me under the blanket.

"What are you doing?" I anxiously asked, watching her readjust her position to try to find a more comfy one.

"Two body can easily heat up a simple cold room, although I'm not cold I can atleast try to help you" She answered, as it felt she was considerably more closer-though it was only by a few inches.

"Thanks" I wasn't sure if I should try to sleep facing her back, as I could also stare at her white hair, it simply looked wonderful to look at. I turned to the other side of the bed as softly as I could.

"When are you going to head to beacon?" her voice was more faint this time.

"Three months" I waited for any immediate reaction from her before I said the official date. "On the 15th

"I see" she said to acknowledge it.

There wasn't much more for us to talk about, as I could feel sleep finally getting a hold of me.

"Goodnight, Alex"

"Goodnight, Jaune" She said in return.


	8. An odd dream

**Author's Note Edit: My schedule isn't the most stable, yay student life, but here's another chapter.**

 **(I didn't realize so many people would favorite and follow this, Thank you)**

* * *

I hadn't been awake for 10 minutes or so when I could feel the sudden cold flooding into my room. Managing to penetrate through my blanket armor.

Alex must of opened the window before I had fully realized where I was.

 **POP**

That caught me off guard as I had gotten up almost the instant I heard it

 _Gunshots._ I turned to head to the door. I had to try to wake up my family.

Instead of the hallway I've always seen after walking out of my room, I found myself in a dim room: It's only light source came from a lantern on a wooden coffee table.

 **SNAP**

That must of been a rifle this time.

I continued to examine the area as I started to collect more information of my surroundings, Everything seemed to be old and covered in dust; there were more then enough cracks and holes in parts of the roof and walls.

The smell of some type of meat gave away that there was food on a table nearby. Along with a couch that was faced away from me which was also arranged to face towards the tv in the middle of the wall.

"Mmm..." A muffled noise interrupted the silence that was in the room, followed by the familiar sound of someone trying to find a comfortable position on a couch.

I slowly made my way towards the sleeping figure, with caution still on my mind as I slowly looked over the couch to see who was there.

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

I stared at the sleeping form for a while, as I wasn't sure what to make of this...

She must of been around my age, as I doubted she could be younger then 15 or older then 18; She had covered herself with a quilt sheet, but I could get a good estimate that her height must of been around: 5'4.

 _Her hair..._ I stopped to examine it once again, as I could see the silver strands she had in her hair. It was harder to see with the dim lighting, but I could still see it enough to know it was real.

 _"Alex?"_ I asked to myself, noticing half of her face not burried into the pillow she was hugging close to herself, It was my guess as to who it was. But that doesn't answer any of my questions: Why did i wake up here, and why is she here? As a younger version of herself as well...

The temperature in the room slowly started to set in for me as I realized how cold it really was, wrapping around me like a coat while she must of been trying her hardest to find some bit of warmth.

I wish I could as well, as I could only endure it for a few small amount of time as the cold only grew more and more heavy, as a invisible coat, to the point that I don't think her quilt sheet is enough protection for her against this type of cold. I felt a bit sad for her. Though she barely moved at all.

 _"Jaune!"_

An equally deafening explosion shook the house

* * *

I snapped back into reality-jolting uncontrollably for just a second- before being held down by a rather forceful hand.

I turned to Alex: meeting her amber eyes, as they focused on me with concern. As it almost felt like they were drilling into me to try to figure out what was wrong.

"Are you okay?" She asked with a hushed tone, though it still broke the heavily silence.

"...Yeah...Just a bad dream..." How exactly could I tell her? I saw _her_ in my dreams, freezing in a dilapidated house.

"You were shivering" She noted "I had to keep you warm, Somehow."

"What happened to the pillows?" The additional layer pillows somewhat made our blanket look more fortified.

"I had to improvise" She somehow said it in the most professional tone I've heard -When it came to pillows and sheets atleast-.

"Right...Sorry about what happened" I struggled to keep eye contact with her, as I felt like I had to look away

"Don't apologize, I was already up"

Her survival instincts must of kicked within the instant I started to move around like that; It must of been her, within that dream of mine. I only wanted to know why it showed her, in what must of been her younger years.

She gave me the rest of her part of the warm covering. "I'll grab a drink for you"

"You really don't need to"

"But I want to" She said with an air of certainty, something similar to what my mom would use whenever she believed it was the best decision to not talk against it.

"Okay..."

The room stood silent, as I looked around the room to confirm I was awake, the first thing that came to mind was a badge she gave me. It wasn't too fancy, as she had explained it represents honor and triumph, while the star in the middle -as Alex explained anyways- was to represent the person who held it; A few days later, I did ask her to train me. Making it a memory of two events.

The door silently opened, as Alex walked back in with two cups, setting both down on the desk.

"Thanks, but uh...why's it steaming hot?" The room's light made the steam visible, while Alex examined the steam as well.

"To warm you up" she stated in a matter of fact tone.

"You...were thinking of giving me hot coco, weren't you?" the other cup was darker and had a familiar scent to it. It had to be coffee.

"The kitchen is a mass-grave of plates. No amount of expertise can allow me to navigate through that mountain" She recalled the journey as if she was hiking a mountain range in the middle of a blizzard.

"So, what's wrong?" She asked, Cutting straight through the fictional layer of awkwardness he had in mind.

"I-...It's nothing" my head shifted away from facing her direction.

" _Nothing_ got you worked up?" She remarked out loud, as she searched through her jacket.

"I don't mean it like that, If I knew how to describe it I would tell you. But it just seems like a random dream"

"Than tell me that random dream, I would want to know why you started to act as if you had _hypothermia_ " She managed to perfectly hit that sensitive tone again, as her voice somehow managed to fit both roles of being a strict mentor and a caring friend, though her ending to that sentence was harsh.

"We're already here" she had commented, pulling out the familiar smoking pipe she almost certainly had on herself. "This isn't a topic i'll let you avoid talking to me about, not after what we just went through"

"Fine...but you know you can't smoke while in the house" watching her leave it in her mouth.

"One of your sisters hid my lighter. It's just to help ease the phantom pains"

"Right." I nodded, knowing full well trying to curve the topic away won't work at this point. "I heard gunfire" I looked at her for a moment before trying to retell the events.

"Was it when we practiced at the firing range?" I shook my head.

"I was in this...city" I looked back at her, to try and see any type of reaction. _'She's staring even more now'_ "It was cold, freezing cold. As there must of been some type of fighting happening. I couldn't see anyone but it was in the distance, with some loud echoes" her face was unreadable. But I didn't need that to know she didn't enjoy this.

"There was this house...I could barely see, but there was someone living there...a kid, freezing...but she had no where to go" The more I thought of her, the more I felt concerned for her. It was vivid and heart wrenching to think of it as something more then a dream.

"I see" she responded, still remaining unreadable, softly nodding her head in acknowledgement.

"It was you"

She stopped for a moment, before looking back at me.

"I couldn't tell you what it means even if you gave me time to think it over. All I could focus on was how you were suffering..." A sigh escaped from her, as she placed down the pipe.

"Look at me, Jaune" her hand was placed lightly on my left shoulder, while she must of been trying her best to act as collected as she could.

"I have no experience of knowledge of how to deal with that dream, let alone know how to interpret it. That isn't to say you should let this dream linger in your mind. My life has been cruel to me in the past, but I _am_ here now"

I nodded slowly.

"It would be bad to also forget about it" I added on.

She nodded in return, as she handed over the lukewarm cup.

"You're still cold" She tilted the cup ever so slightly, to gesture to it.

It actually felt a lot warmer now, from a few minutes ago. As i tried to voice it.

"I-"

"Just drink it" She ordered, back to her normal tone.

"...Ok" It helped a decent amount. "Hey Aleks?"

"Hmm?"

"Can we take a break from the morning routine, just for today?"

"Sure, Jaune"


	9. Early Morning Chatter

**Author's Notes: I actually feel a bit bad for having this delayed, sorry for the absolutely long wait time.** **I also need names for Jaune's sisters, feel free to leave a few name ideas in the reviews!**

 **It's also been 157 or so days since I last posted so...yeah sorry! (Leave a review if you also have any improvements I should add) -Aaron**

 **Edit: A bit of fixing to some of the sentences, let me know if anything seems to be a bit off!  
**

* * *

3 am.

.

.

.

3:01am.

It was still dark out, and we both were running on only 2 hours of sleep at most, I could feel the weight of it weighing on me; Alex meanwhile...

"How are you able to stay awake?" I asked her, noticing she barely showed any signs of exhaustion.

"I grew up with a...inconsistent sleep cycle." She gulped down more of her coffee.

"Right…?" I didn't buy it.

"I was planning to wake up an hour from now, coffee also helps." She finished her cup, before looking at the gigantic mass that was the stack of plates within the sink and bulging out of it.

"We're going to have to clean that later." I pointed out.

"Even a hunter can't finish all those plates." She looked at the stack in disbelief.

"Which is why we'll have more then one." I explained, as she looked at me now.

"You can't be serious?" She looked back at me, as she had calculated the amount of dishes there were in there based on perfectly sound math.

"Oh I am, the usual rule is to wash 25 plates, _minimum_. And You'll be fine." She shook her head.

"Well, let's start ahead of time. The longer we let it wait, the bigger that pile seems to grow." I couldn't help but agree with her on that part, as I got out of my seat to help.

"A line of hunters and a soldier take on the infamous after party dishes, I think i've seen this in a Mistral show before." I couldn't remember the name though, which sucked because it was a really good show.

"It was a line of ninjas and a mercenary, I'm more of a commander than a mercenary." She commented, as I tossed her a pair of sponges. She looked at the pair questioningly before realizing. "A single sponge won't survive what's left of an entire family of hunters and huntresses party, if it does survive it'll be-agh!" she had muttered something after it but I wasn't sure what.

"Alex!" looking over she seemed okay as she dried her hand, mumbling something I couldn't understand.

"I'm okay, I didn't expect the water to be this hot. It's already steaming."

"Oh that, yeah. Jasmine installed a insta-heat system a bit ago, it's really useful to make instant-noodles; is your hand okay?"

"It's fine, I just wasn't expecting it...Aren't instant-noodles already quick to make?"

"They are, but it's to cut it down even more by a few, yeah it's hard to defend its purpose like that. It does help a lot though, saves usage water-at least that's what Dad is happy about."

"It's starting to feel like a Sauna." She noted, trying to find the perfect range.

"Oh, that. Here, turn the dial like that-no like- here." Turning it slightly more to the right worked. Although that look on her face wasn't anything good.

"You seemed a bit _too_ eager there." She noted, going back to washing each plate before it could fight back with an ever hardening stain.

"It's a natural reaction-"

"To hold my hand?" She asked without hesitation in the slightest.

"Wha-No! I mean- it's a natural reaction to reach out to help when you have 7 siblings." She smiled in return, while I tried to hide my blush.

"I would of accepted a simple 'yes'." She added on.

"It's not like that, I mean- let's just change the subject. What should I expect at Beacon?" I had to start packing, hopefully i'll have enough space to carry some of the stuff I need.

"Well for one, alot of humiliation if you're planning to wear that onsie." That was uncalled for!

"...how do you know about that? It was dad wasn't it?" _Dammit dad_ , I know he's just trying to do what's best for me, but he didn't have to reveal _that oh god what else did he tell her?_

"No, I saw that abomination in your closet a while ago, I'll buy normal sleepwear for you." Her voice had an air of finality.

"Ok...what else should I expect from Beacon?" After this I should ask one of my sisters.

"Well, It tries to mix school aspects you'd find anywhere with hunter classes. I hear the ladies there come in all hair colors." She didn't even skip a beat before adding that last part.

"Hey!" I groaned. "I only stared at your hair for a few-"

"Minutes." She interrupted.

"Min- Seconds!" Catching my slip up."What can I actually expect at Beacon?"

She placed another clean dish on a growing stack. "For you, try to ask for help on your class work. "

I looked at her a bit hurt. "I'm not that bad at school work…Huh?"

She had placed her hand on top of my head, I could only look at her confused before she started to...pet me? "You're terrible at asking for help; you just need a slight push for everything else you have doubts about." she stopped her relentless (albeit soft) petting after a minute or so. "I can bring in extra help."

"Huh? Really?" I did need as much help as I could before beacon came, as long as it didn't involve more morning laps. I don't think I can handle any more of those. "What for?"

"As much fun as it is to play soldier, I can't train you in how to wield Crocea Mors. Or any other weapon that isn't gunpowder based or super heavy and driveable." I didn't have a lot of time, it was coming up fast and I had 2 months to do this. Well 8 and a half weeks...but that's besides the point!

"You're right, after the dragon's breath incident I don't think mom's ready for me to have my own gun yet. So who's this person?" Her smile shifted a fair bit into that trademark smirk of hers. "I'm starting to already regret asking." Alex and I both knew rifle practice would have to be paused sadly, -sorry mom- after the _incident_.

"One last thing." She said as she finished up the last of her dishes, while I was already putting mine away.

"Yeah?" I continued to store them away.

"Don't trust Ozpin." She warned, it came out of nowhere.

I looked at her for a moment, closing the cabinet. Why him? I knew who he was, Dad works with him from time to time and I know he's the headmaster of Beacon.

The way Alex talks about him though... I'll keep that in mind. It just seems weird, dad works with or for him a lot of the time, she must have her own reasons.

I'd ask her, but the sound of my parents door opening, and my mom yawning as she walked into the room made sure I couldn't ask her for now.

"Good morning." She yawned out as she pulled me into a tight hug.

"Mom!" I whined as she usually didn't let go until she started to fully wake up.

"Zdr-." Alex greeted, I couldn't quite hear her, but I'm certain I've never heard of any greetings that start with a Z.


	10. New (De)mentor

**Author's Note: Not sure if i'm getting a hang of it yet, but here's to a new post!**

 **I hope you guys enjoy some swordplay!**

* * *

Landing on my back was something I quickly got used to, It still hurts every time I fell like this, but I couldn't help it with how... _harsh_ her style of teaching was.

My sword thrown to the side of us, as this was probably the fastest I've ever been disarmed like that. Crocea Mor was practically struck out of my hand as it stood now dug into the earth and out of my reach as I could only look up at my new sword mentor.

"Break." Alex said to the side, timing the round. "9 seconds." Alex was sitting to the side as she dried her jacket under the bright sun.

That was my new high score, I sighed before grabbing my mentor's hand, helping me back up. "Thanks Rhiannon." I wasn't angry, she was trying to estimate my skills.

She nods, I couldn't help but admire her as she raised me. _Were they sisters?_ Her hair was the same color...Not to mention they were similar in height and body shape, Alex stood at 6 ft while Rhiannon had to be around 5'10; both being...developed in similar ways, though I think Alex was bigger in that sense as well. " _Accents as well"_ I noted, mainly her Th and R/Ls sounded a bit off, the former always sounding more of a T and D rather then a Th. the latter always ending in a hard roll.

"You can let go of my hand now." I did so after stuttering out an apology. I shouldn't get caught up looking at her, otherwise Alex is going to have a field day after this is over.

She stepped back to her original position, returning her wooden sword to its rest. "Isn't it dangerous If I use a real sword but you have a wooden sword?" Crocea Mor somehow held its sharpness even if the last person to use it was Granddad.

"My sword will handle." She stopped for a moment as she focused on me. "Get into your position, left foot first, right back."

I did so, hips facing the opponent, not sidewards. Crocea Mor was at shoulder level. I didn't realize how intense someone could stare at me until I saw how she was noting everything I had to work on.

"Bring your sword forward, you want to protect yourself from any last minute attacks that might try to land. Good, step to me. No, keep your right foot a bit to the right as you move." I did so, moving slowly for now as her orders. "Repeat."

"Bring down your sword in a straight line." I did so, as she swung her blade, as it was blocked by Crocea Mors' cross guard. "Your hands and head are protected with this. This is called the Ober- Strike from above." She corrected herself. Was she going to say Overhead strike?

We did so, repeating the basics as we picked up speed. Soon I was striking her at normal speed. I wonder if she would be this straight to the point if I didn't pulled what I did.

* * *

 **A bit ago**

" _Where were they?"_ I waited at the usual training spot we used, resting on one of the various sandbags strewn about. The area still had a few marks from some of our training, a few craters, of various sizes, as well as a burn patch… It just so happened there was a vial of fire dust that didn't go off until that point.

 _I should surprise them._ It had be 8am by now and Alex wanted me to be here by 7, that's when it caught my eye: a single spud, at some point Alex must of placed a pin into it, it was a waste for this spud grenade. Alex did want me to work on my throwing arm anyways. I'm amazed she even found a potato this round to begin with.

My ears perked up, footsteps. Where to hide? Behind the sandbags? No, they'd see my position a mile away. The bushes? Too noisy. _Wait!_ I dived straight to the the small groundwork I was forced to dig out.

"... ...t twóy ma...?" They were still too far away, but whoever Alex brought had to be female; just what were they saying though?

"Rek… sam mu ….do sedam." I wanted to listen to it more, It isn't like anything I've heard before, but Alex was speaking fluently in whatever it was. _I wonder what they're saying._

They must of been near the sandbags, I smiled as I readied the pin. Mouthing a _sorry Alex_ as I pulled the pin on the potato and tossed it towards them.

* * *

 **Present**

Her wooden sword suddenly slid towards me, hitting my head. "Ow! Hey!"

It wouldn't leave a mark, but I didn't expect it.

"You weren't paying attention, I'm giving you a new lesson." She was a bit irked, as she stepped back. "As I was saying, ready your position again, this time aim your blade at my blade. Thrust it towards my head or neck when you land your blade."

"Don't you think you should have at least some type of padding?" besides her uniquely designed white sports jacket which doesn't seem to have any padding in it, She had nothing on that could stop my blade if I made a mistake.

"If you and Alex managed to survive c4 handling, I'll can survive a blade training, and _IF_ you do stab me, that'll be the closest you'll have to impaling a lady on your 'sword'." I wanted to ask about that, at least on the fact she never taught me how to handle 'c4' as they called it. Though I felt an urge to not tell her about that just yet.

* * *

 **In the trench a bit ago**

I was horribly wrong.

I knew there only had to be two of them, but the amount of firepower they had shown had to be worth at least as much as a small army, bullets flying everywhere and part of the trench I was in even coming apart. A second later a red canister landed next to me. _Incendiary_.

Crawling wasn't difficult, being flipped over and pinned to the ground with 2 guns held against me was impossible to get out of. "There's your blonde knight" The lady mentioned as she placed her gun away.

"Alive and kicking." Alex dryly stated, as she placed her pistol away.

"You guys made me wait an hour, what took you so long?" I gestured to both of their boots pinning me down still. "Erh...ladies, your boots? Is that...Alcohol by the way?"

Alex held a broken bottle, as well as her damp jacket. _It seemed to be drying up on her jacket at a fast rate_ , I noted.

"Uh…" I started again, hoping they were listening to what I was saying. "I'm sorry, can you please get your boots off me now?" They didn't budge.

"He fits the description you gave of him." Alex nodded with her. "He's also the one you want me to train?"

"Oh, he is." I had a feeling this wasn't going to end well. "I'd ask you to show him some mercy, but it seems he has a talent for ambushes."

"I'll break him in." _Ladies i'm right here! Please stop staring at me like I signed away my will-okay that part I couldn't deny when I threw that spud, but still!_

"We still need him alive and walking after today." Alex warned, at least she wasn't too mad- "A one-on-one is in order." On second thought, I should of just continued hiding in that trench.

"Uh, why didn't that grenade go off in the trench by the way?" It should of covered the entire trench in flames by now. Looking back at it, I could see its product name. ' _Cola'_...oh.

"As I _was_ going to say. Jaune, this is a friend of mine, as well as your new mentor." Alex introduced her as she hung her jacket out to dry on a nearby stack of sandbags.

Rhiannon applied more pressure, I wanted to push her off but that was really hard. "Next time you throw a 'grenade', make sure to cook it first, you don't want to let your target throw it back. No?" As she handed me back the potato, now soaked in what Alex was going to drink.

* * *

Okay I did, mess up that much.

"Final round, 1v1." Alex called out again as she was on her scroll, scrolling through some type of app.

I looked at Rhiannon, as she nods before walking back towards her starting spot. I wondered how I should approach this, charging at her had to be suicidal, maybe even what she expected of me. That wasn't going to be a good idea.

"Start!" Alex announced, as I raised my sword. It was starting to feel a bit heavy, but I'll manage.

I waited, mirroring her movements as best as I could: keeping on my side. She stared at me, it seemed easy for her to hide her emotions.

I barely managed to block, as she had charged. She wasn't keeping to the basics, but she wasn't going all out either. Alex didn't mention anything about what we could do, maybe I could actually last longer than 9 seconds.

" _Back!"_ I did so, stepping back.

She was fast, and her blade -though wooden- was able to still hold an impressive amount of power. I had to keep trying! Catching her blade with Crocea's guard, I thrusted my blade forwards her. Stopping before I actually could actually hurt her.

"I have to give it to you. You're able to remember what I told you a few minutes ago." I wasn't sure if that was a compliment.

A sudden kick knocked me back, almost making me lose my grip; actually I left hand had lost grip as I had to act fast.

" _ **Grab you blade."**_ Something ordered me, I didn't have time to react as I followed so. She was charging at me, I had to grab what I could. _I'm going to regret this_. I gripped Crocea's blade, my right hand grabbing a hold of it. _**"SWING!"**_ It all but yelled, I swung at her as if this was a hammer.

I brought it to a stop before it could actually hit. I still don't understand why she didn't even consider wearing a helmet but I could see how accustomed she looked to this, a small smile was beginning to form on her lips. I wonder how long she's been doing this.

"Excellent work." Alex clapped once, as she looked at her scroll. "1 minute. You've improved considerably." She got up and stretched, she finally placed her jacket back on as it dried out faster than I thought it would.

I looked back at Rhiannon: how flawlessly she had moved, how each attack didn't have hesitation, and how her eyes never seemed to shift once from its calm glare. _Her attacks are perfect_ , I agreed with my thoughts. She seemed bored though, was she used to danger or liked the feeling of adrenaline?

"I'm sorry for how we met earlier." I paused. I kept eye contact as with her as I continued on. "But I also want to thank you for training me."

"It's why I am here; Your grip is sloppy." she noted the cuts in my hands.

It was starting to set in how I messed up, as my hand stung. "I know...medic?" I called out as I hoped my hand wouldn't be out of action for too long. I wondered for a moment if what I had was anything but my imagination, looking around I found only Alex and Rhiannon.

"Hold still." Alex said rummaging through one of her pockets as a shudder went through me, I remembered what she was going to use.

"Oh, uh actually I'm fine! I just need a bandage!" I hid my hand behind my back as she pulled out my worst nightmare: the dreaded _RedSpray_ , once applied it'll burn the insides of your hand away for an agonizing lifetime.

"The cut seems deep, we'll need to patch it up." Alex noted, as she had already taken off the cap, shaking the spray can.

"No no, I'm _really_ fine, I just need to bandage it." I stepped back, bumping into Rhiannon.

"Hold him down, we'll be done in a second." Alex approached as I tried to to escape Rhiannon's reach; only for an arm to wrap around me, while another grabbed my arm and held it open.

"Don't you think this is a waste of a spray?! I mean, you yourself says you generally use it or deep wounds. I'll just apply alcohol to it!" I shouldn't of said that.

* * *

 **Poor Jaune, at least I managed to put out a new chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it, any advice you want to give me feel free to write it in the reviews.**


	11. Some Jasmine Time

**Author's Note: This took a bit longer then expected, I'm still unsure if it went well. I don't want to delay it too long. Here's what I managed to write up!**

* * *

" _Where is he?"_ Jasmine sighed as she stared out of the restaurant's window, now waiting for the missing knight she wanted to try this new place with. her mind didn't try in the slightest to hide that it thought about her 'knightly' younger brother and his dreams on becoming a hunter.

She rolled her eyes again, having been touched of course to hear him shout his dream to her when she left for beacon, but she just thought it would go away after he started to gain interest in video games and ladies like herself.

" _Why couldn't he follow Saphron's footsteps?"_ Sure Saphron was trained like everyone else in the family, but she had willingly stepped down from the life after she found the love of her life. Maybe I should do something similar with him…

"Uh..Jas?" Jaune greeted out of nowhere, almost making me jump out of my chair. How could he manage to sneak up on me even after all this time? His smile always could keep me and all our sisters distracted for as long as he had it up. Though, there was something different with him, I managed to catch it as he closed the door to the room.

"What's on your hand?" interrupting his excuses, something about training with Alex and a new mentor. " _She? He just said she."_ I'll have to ask him about it later.

"Oh that? I was training with Alex and I grabbed Crocea Mor by it's blade, it turns out it's still really sharp even after staying on top of the fireplace; So what did you order?" He sat down and picked up the menu, slightly recoiling his hand back.

"The number 8." He still didn't have his aura yet, did Alex choose not to activate it purposefully? His eyes were focused on the menu as he ignored the red spray around his palms. Why did he grab his blade?

"Hmm...I'm thinking-" Number 14, with extra brisket and flanks. "14 with extra brisket and flanks." called it.

After one of the waiters came by and took down our orders I wondered what to ask him, how to approach this. "How's training?" He wouldn't mind too much, though he would try his best to not show too much excitement.

"Well. Alex is ramping up my training to include a few more specialties, do you mind not telling the others for now what they're teaching me? I don't want to push Aurelia into a hysterical state." I nodded, sometimes Aurelia could be even more overbearing then I was of Jaune. It's not that I disagreed with her, I just don't think permanently grounding Jaune to the house with a shock collar would be a wise choice. For now of course, for now it wasn't.

"I won't." Jaune always held an Arc's promise close to his heart.

"Alex brought in a new mentor to help train me with swords." He held back part of what he was going to say from me, as he looked away out of the window.

Alex and someone else was walking past on the other side of the street, Alex had just finished lighting that tobacco pipe of hers, her jacket was also another thing that gave her away. I wasn't sure who that lady was next to her, maybe a sister.

Something was off about her, somewhat different then Alex. It had to do with how she held herself, her posture was for the most part hidden from me. Yet she always kept on guard, her vision exploring the area in front of her within a second as she made some type of note in her head. She had some type of training, staying close to Alex, she had to be guarding her.

Alex always is secretive, never really mentioning anything about her job or her past besides mentioning passing comments about her upbringing. Almost always involving some type of hardship.

"She's your mentor, right?" Jaune nodded. "Aren't you going to invite them in?" He shook his head this time, I already knew what he would say. It was just pleasing to hear him actually say it.

"I know you want to spend it with just the two of us. I can make time for them later if they need me, for now it's just our time." I couldn't fight the smile forming on my face, he always had that effect..

"Relia's going to come over as well, she's just running a bit late." _Maybe a bit purposefully late thanks to little bit of my 'help'._ Although I did promise her I would make sure to get a decent measure for some of the collars out there, it was a trade we'd both agreed to. "Hey Jaune?"

"Yeah?" He asked.

"You can stop staring at them now." he snapped his head back towards me, as he shook his head. Always stopping for a moment to enjoy the scenery around him and things he was grateful for, of course at his expense with how easy it was to tease him.

"Sorry, I didn't meant to-" I shot him down instantly.

"Is it her hair?" He froze for a moment.

"W-what?" stuttering out what he could. I could see his face redden already. Bullseye.

"Well, I can see why you like her. I just don't quite know what _part_ exactly attracts you: Maybe it's those eyes of hers? Amber suits her well, no?" It wasn't it, though I could tell that it hit some part of his thoughts of her. I was on the right track. "Maybe it's that stride of hers, with how you usually follow her, I can see why you might like the way she walks. Though with a jacket like hers, I don't quite see how you could make out the way her legs stride."

"J-jas, c'mon." He begged silently, this wasn't over by a longshot.

"Is it her body, Jaune?" he stiffened; no it couldn't be that. I knew Jaune didn't consider someone based on their body type for the most part, and Alex's jacket hid her form most of the time; I wonder why she decides to wear it all year round, even in the _summer_. "You are a teenager, I could see why your mind might start looking at ladies such as her in a different light now. I just hope can control yourself, I know she's a double D cup but still."

"Jas!" he half shouted, no one paid attention to us thanks to the somewhat enclosed room we managed to book at this place. He whispered something.

"Huh?" I asked, finishing up my amusement.

"Her hair..." He mumbled out. "Please don't laugh." He looked around, twiddling his thumbs.

"What about it?" It was only natural for an older sister to know what type of fashion sense her little bro would want...right? It had to be, I could always feed this to Aurelia, for a price of course.

"The way it's just perfect on her, you know? She's like a…" he paused for a moment.

"Angel?" I suggested.

"No!" Jaune shouted, before setting back down fast. I wonder if I should tell him the walls are soundproof. "She's definitely not an angel. Her hair...adds to her, a personality of its own added onto her already amazing personality. It makes you wonder what experiences they had to turn it that color, or was she always born with that color? What part of the world is she from, recently I heard her talking and it wasn't in our language."

"Wait. What was that last part?" I heard it, but I wanted to see him repeat them.

"The language thing? I heard her talk in this language of hers, it sounded a bit rough, but the way she rolled her R's, amazing." Did talking about her in anyway make him smile?

"She could be from Atlas, many parts of the world still has their own languages, maybe she's just holding close to traditions?" Although it is rare to find it, was she from an older family?

"Well, maybe." He said, as there was a knock at the sliding door, Relia was here.

"Sorry, it took a bit longer then expected." Aurelia apologized as she sat down next to Jaune.

"I already ordered for you." I noted, Order 15, extra tripe. Her attention still locked onto Jaune, as he tried in vain to struggle out of the steel strengthened hug.

Gasping for air, Jaune managed to finally pull himself away from her. "What's on your hand?" all color on his face instantly drained.

"It's nothing!" closing his palm to hide it from her. _Help me_ , he mouthed.

"Why is it red?" Aurelia inquired, easily grabbing Jaune's hand back with her natural speed.

"Ow! Stop, stop!" Aure's finger slowly traced the fine red line left on his hand.

"What is this?" She quietly asked, I haven't seen anything like it either. Some new medical dust?

"It's nothing, hey isn't our food coming soon?" He looked around, then at the door silent for a moment hoping someone delivers the food soon.

"You were training." She noted, finishing her trace of his palm. "How did you hurt yourself? And who were you with?" He never was the best, especially under Aurelias now cold tone.

"He was training with me." I spoke up, as her head finally snapped to me. _How could you_ , I could see her eyes, their emotions to me perfectly. "He grabbed Crocea Mors the wrong way, even after being left above the fireplace, it's still sharp. Alex just so happened to have patched it up with an Atlesian first aid kit." gesturing an apology with a single wave.

I just couldn't let him fend for himself, not yet. Beacon...well, he'll have friends... _hopefully_ that will help with that.

Ignoring Aurelia's death glare, I was the first to notice. "Oh, food's here." A knock at the door, I knew this wasn't over.

"...Jaune." She asked, as the waitress left, the door closing behind her automatically.

"Yeah…?" He hesitated before responding.

"If you need help training, I could help." The sudden snap of Jaune's chopsticks didn't catch her off guard. "If you've already asked Jas, I could help you as well." She flashed a smile towards him and me. No, there was something more to it, we both knew it.

"Well, I'd love to, but….Just what do you have in mind?" trying in vain to at least taste his meal before it turned cold.

"At the very end of your training, you have to defeat me in a round of combat." Jaune for a moment almost choking on a strand of noodles he was trying to enjoy.

"W-wait! I only have a few more weeks worth of training!" She was having none of it, so this was her last attempt to stop him.

"I want the best for you Jaune." That same line again. "If you can beat me, say: landing a single hit on me, I'll give you my blessing to go to beacon." _He's already accepted in_. I noted with a sweatdrop, at least until initiation. "You might even learn a few tricks that might, save. Your. _life_."

He slowly nodded, we both knew that last part was more friendly then she lead on to believe.

"Tomorrow at 6." I spoke up. "That's when we usually train, don't we?" Jaune nodded, fast. Of course, Alex and that bodyguard of hers will be there as well. I just want to watch and learn their process...Aaaand maybe also watch how much my little brother has improved over the months...That's just normal isn't it?

I'll have to prepare, I wonder how exactly they're training him. I'll tease him about it later.

* * *

 **I wanted to give his older sisters some screen time, I hope you guys enjoyed this. Until next time! feel free to leave a review if you have any suggestions to help me make this story better.  
**


	12. One Thousand (and one) Bullets

**Authors Note: Enjoy.**

* * *

Landing on my back is a _way_ too familiar feeling; it was less painful at least, but my training has only escalated ever since Aurelia and Jasmine had gotten involved.

"Your footing's off." Jasmine noted, sitting on a pile of sandbags, her eyes able to examine even the slightest minute detail, and make some dead on notes.

"Focus as well." Rhiannon noted, trading places with Aurelia and vice versa every time I landed on the ground.

Right, _focus._ I charged at Aurelia, only for her abused wooden sword to find its way through my legs, last time she aimed for my head.

I broke a new record of falling on my back within 10 seconds.

"We'll have to teach you better tactics." Aurelia noted. Checking if I was alive, using a spare wooden sword; I lost count how many they decided to bring.

"Ow…" I manage to answer. At least enough to please Aurelia.

"Our time is short already." Alex noted, placing away a now empty bottle. "If you think it's this important, teach him. You did go to beacon after all." Placing away her lighter.

Glancing at Aurelia, then Rhiannon. It wasn't some conspiracy to know they out match me, thankfully they're training me, even if I have to beat Aurelia in a round of combat at the very end of this.

Progress was...slow, Alex and Jasmine stayed to the side, letting me suffer at my sister [and Rhia's!] hands. I was keeping up with what they told me, 'Jaune swing here, Jaune strike towards X.' Rhia chastised, _I was only taking Jasmine's advice on observation!_ Jasmine's going to have a field day with me after we're done; speaking of which.

"Why not test yourself against Alex?" I looked at Jasmine. "No Jaune, I didn't grow a second head. Test yourself against Alex, if Aurelia's fully invested into close range combat, you won't have much of a chance; but if you were to go up against-."

"I wouldn't suggest that." Rhiannon spoke up, as Alex entered the ring.

"If my student wants to, I'll give him what he wants." spinning the sword in her hand as she got used to its grip.

I nodded, Aurelia and Rhia were great for learning new tactics, but were horrible at the _training_ part. My back agreed with me.

"So when do we sta-!?" Her jacket blocked my vision as I tried to raise my sword and block any coming attack; _I didn't want to cut through her jacket, even if it was partly stuck onto my face now._

Crocea had managed to hit something at least, but a blunt blow against my stomach also made itself known.

"Next time, give me a heads up at least." It still felt cold to the touch, as Alex peeled her jacket off my face. It did have a subtle fragrance to it, lavender? _Jaune no!_ I stopped myself from falling into the same tease trap again. It was still a nice scent.

"It wouldn't be as fun, now, would it? Your reaction is getting better, you managed to at least hit my blade; albeit you changed my target from your arm to your stomach. We are getting somewhere with training, though I have to test something." She partly talked to herself. as she got back to the other side of the chalked out sparring circle.

 **Beep Beep.**

"Again? Dammit, okay. Change of plans, Aurelia, Jasmine continue training Jaune however you see fit. Something important came up." I tossed her jacket back, as she wasted no time catching it with one arm already in its sleeve. Silencing her scroll. "Jaune, sometimes you need to act without warning. I wanted to show you a better way, but. I know your sisters will have their own training for you. Don't break him too harshly, ladies. Oh and Jaune, always be ready for combat."

She waved goodbye, along with Rhia doing so as well, packing up the ammo boxes and other supplies they brought, leaving the first aid kit at least.

"Okay, Jaune! Now that we have _our_ time to train, I want you to practice this attack-" Aurelia tried to say but Jasmine had her own idea in mind.

"Lunchtime!" Jasmine shouted, having already unpacked our food. Time had slipped by faster then I thought.

"Sigh, we will continue after lunch. I suggest examining your food for any odd pills or tastes, Jasmine has odd ways of helping." Aurelia commented, finding the 2nd comfiest seat, while glaring at Jasmine for taking the first

"Any ideas where they're headed?" I asked, It had to be from their jobs, Alex usually had set up different tones or each contact. That one was tone seemed the blandest out of the ones I've heard.

"I have a theory. Jaune?" Jasmine asked.

"Huh? Oh!, sorry!" Grabbing the food she was trying to hand me as I looked back at her wondering what her theory was.

"Something about Grimm migration. At least that's what she said a few years ago. My guess is she either sells that knowledge to nearby hunters and villages, or tries to find ways to neutralize or redirect them. It would explain why she tends to leave for months on end, recently a super horde is said to be making its way past the kingdom of Vale. Alex could be projecting their course." Aurelia noted, somehow keeping her table manners without a table here.

"She leaves around the time a White Fang attack has been reported." I snapped my head to Jasmine, as she set her boxed lunch down for a moment. Reaching for her scroll. "Let's see here… There's already reports of some type of attack on a Schnee Dust Company cargo train, No reports yet on casualties. It's likely Grimm are going to swarm that location."

She spoke with a cold tone, it was off setting before sighing. "Sorry, these things becoming far too much of a frequent thing. I'd wager that Alex has some type of revenge mission against the white fang, they might of stolen something important from her or they left her for dead. She also seems to smoke more often after coming back from her job."

I nodded with intent. Alex had never really said anything much about the White Fang before, though she's also the type to no bring it up unless asked. "She's good at holding her emotions. What if these things are actually eating away at her? She smokes and drinks every day, and soon enough it'll catch up to her." I managed to catch Jasmine and Aurelia silently nodding to each other.

"Hey… Jaune, Does Alex tell you anything about herself?" Jasmine asked, as I thought about it. "What Kingdom she's from, or what military she was a part of?"

"Well. I always imagine she's from Atlas, she really loves the cold and all. Her house is covered with up to date modern appliances and uh...what else. Well...I wonder if her accent is just something her family had, or if it's something a bit common in Atlas. Than again, I've never seen her use dust." I wondered if she was actually from Atlas.

"That crate over there, what's it for, Jaune?" Aurelia asked walking to it.

"Huh? Oh that, Alex mentioned whatever's in there shouldn't be touched, I guess they forgot it? Erh, Aurelia what's with the crowbar?" I tried to get up only for a stinging sensation to make itself known. I looked at Jas, she'd gotten close enough to kick me back down, and even wrap her arms around me to stop me from moving. "Hey! C'mon Jaz, let go! I don't want to search around in the stuff Alex kept locked for a reason!" I tried to push Jaz off but she kept a strong grip.

"Just stay still Jaune, both me and Aurelia are just interested in finding out a bit more about Alex." I could hear her practically whispering into my ear, she didn't have to be this close!

"Aurelia!" I called to her as she jammed the crowbar into the crate's small corner lining, and then forcing it to open with a loud snap a second after. "Dammit, I'm going to have to be the one that replaces that crate you know!"

"Jas, Jaune, come here." The demand in her voice was masked by the calmness of it, but we both knew better. Jasmine basically carried me there, as the three of us saw it.

"Bullets?" I asked, raising one of the slightly heavy brass cased projectile.

"Thousands of them." Jasmine counted, as the box was almost overflowing. "Look for case any type of identification." She ordered Aurelia.

"Guys, seriously, you got what you came for. Let's just _put_ the the lid back on and make sure these things don't get wet if it rains." I looked at the both of them before sighing. They were too interested to stop. It seemed each of the bullets had a number on the round bottom end. 7.62x39?

"Must be the caliber. Though I've never seen these types of bullet cases before, it doesn't look like they'd have any type of dust: Their case would of at least indicated it, any luck finding a manufacturer, Aure?" Jasmine placed the bullet back as I looked at the thousands in this case, Alex did mention our training would see some guns when we get to the final stretches.

"No marks. I doubt we could trace these where ever they came from." Jasmine concluded, as Aurelia had manage to cut one open.

"There we go." She commented, cautiously avoiding dropping any of the powder on herself. "Gunpowder, Not a lot of people use gunpowder alone, usually people just settle with dust, usually anyways. Maybe Alex's cutting back on budget?" Aurelia questioned.

"Maybe. Hey Jaune." Jasmine asked.

"No." I refuse.

"But-"

"No."

"You haven't even heard what I have to say!" Jasmine cried out.

"You want me to snoop around in Alex's house and gather her personal files!" I shouted at her.

"Only her finances!"

"How's that any better!?" I cried out. "I still have to figure out how to close this crate again!"

"Aren't you also suspicious as to how she can afford all of _this_?!" Jasmine lifted up one of the bullets, before gesturing to the thousand bullets just laying about.

"Well... She's part of some type of military group, surely she can afford to get some surplus ammo." I reasoned.

" _Which_ military, Jaune?" She stressed.

"I don't _know_ , maybe she's just rich enough to just buy these things?" It would explain the modern house, the ammunition and all the equipment we managed to train with. "She. She could be a veteran, her training doesn't seem made up, and she has Rhia to back her up."

Aurelia sighed loudly enough to catch both of our attentions. "You wrote down on your transcript your mentor is Alex, right?" She paused as she looked at me.

"Yeah, but I didn't try to send it!, Mom must of-"

"Ozpin saw it, and you got in." She sighed again. "She's going to have a field day with you."

I nodded, as that was- "Did you just say _she_?" Alex mentioned 'he' and 'him' multiple times.

"Headmaster Ozpin, well, mistress, but she prefers headmaster. Yes she's a _she_." Jasmine spoke up one last time.

"Great, there goes the plan in my head." I looked around, sighing one last time.

"Did your plan really revolve around the headmaster being male?" Jasmine inquired.

" **YES!"** Atleast, maybe tried to get close to her so I could learn why Alex doesn't trust him-her? "Can we at least try to finish today's training? Aurelia you said you were going to teach me a new move."

"I- I did, okay I also need to test you on a few other basic things. Have they unlocked your Aura yet?" I shook my head. "Good, I'll unlock it for you."

* * *

 **Author's Note: That's right, female Ozpin, any suggestions? Feel free to leave a review.**


	13. Aura

**AN: I'm bad at Chapter names.  
**

* * *

 _"Hack!, Thrust!, Avoid her blade!"_

I stepped back, barely missing _Maelstrom Blonde_ : Aurelia's fluidity shifting pollaxe, The overhead pummeling, when it came to any one else, would of been dust boosted, either using gravity or an explosive dust to boost its power.

Crocrea Mors wouldn't of saved me from the pure kinetic force Aurelia can dish out. Sadly she broke the last wooden sword we had a while ago, so we're stuck with real weapons now.

"You could at least attempt to block my attacks every so often." She noted, returning the shifting axe to its inactive form, capable of resting simply on her person with ease.

"No thanks, I don't want to break my arm." I'd be out for a month probably.

"You don't want me and Jasmine to nurse you back to health?" Aurelia proudly pointing to herself.

"What if I want to be the one to take care of you for once?" I suggested.

"Huh?" She asked, caught off guard, _now was my chance!_

"Well, both of you had taken care of me when I was very young and sick, so maybe for once." I stood in front of her, I could easily see how red she was turning, maybe it was because I was just too close to her; hopefully she wasn't turning sick. Taking her hand, I smiled. "I could, try to care for you when you need it."

"J-jaune, I-" She froze, as she felt Crocrea Mors resting against her. "That's low." She pouted.

"You can blame Dad, he tends to give me advice on how to be more social. Well, that isn't fully true. With how you guys treat me, it was bound to happen." I shrugged, inwardly uttering a thank you to him. Although he did warn against over using it.

"What was bound to happen?" Jasmine asked. Switching places with Aurelia, bringing out _Déni Gracieux_. A quarter staff in its current form, in her hands it was just as deadly as any other weapon she could of brought, _and this was one of her non-lethal weapons!_

"Start!" Aurelia declared.

"I was bound to notice your beauty, Jasmine." I said simply, as I lowered Crocrea Mors.

"That's- True…?" She looked away for a moment as her weapon was still gripped in her hand. I guess compliments are her weakness?

I approached her, I doubted under any normal circumstance I would be able to get this close. Training or not, she loved personal space. "Your smile is really what gets to me. It is faint, but I want to see it more often." I _really_ need to thank Dad later for this.

I froze in front of her, the ferrule of her quarterstaff resting against my chest.

"That is sweet of you, bro; Save your compliments for a princess." She suggested.

"Right." In a quick session I thrusts Crocea Mors towards her.

She was still far more quicker, losing my breath and my balance before I realized how fast she had done it.

"Agh…." I wonder how long Aurelia stood looming over me.

"Ready to activate that aura of yours?" I nodded, trying to balance myself as she had let go.

"Shouldn't this be the very first part of training?" looking at Aurelia than at Jasmine who both shrugged.

"Blame Jasmine, she wanted to test you one last time." Aurelia admitted.

"A before and after!" Jasmine confirmed, I didn't want to admit to her it was a bit off putting with how energetic she sounded, compared to her normal tone.

"Okay. Stand right there Jaune." I did so, watching as she placed her hands on me.

Time around us slowed down, became meaningless to us for this moment. I could just be over thinking it.

"Close your eyes." I did so, her other hand soon touching my chest plate.

" _In light we are given the ability to see;_

 _Yet: in darkness we desire what we are denied,_

 _As our actions shape the world_

 _The world shapes our actions,_

 _In the infinity of reality, we choose advancement_

 _Although temporary and mortal,_

 _Our actions are immortal, as history likewise turns us so:_

 _Let your soul manifest, and strike justly._

 _Brave Knight of Mine."_

"Is… Is that it?" I judged Aurelia's reaction, she was out of breath, trying to recover as I helped sit her down on one of the makeshift chairs we had.

"It's- It's not meant to die down." Uncertainty was evident in her voice. "You drained me of a lot of aura."

"Die down?, Aurelia, I don't feel any different, what happened?...Did it fail?" I asked.

"No!, It didn't. Your aura seems to still be partially sleeping." This wasn't normal.

"I-Ow!" Jasmine's quarterstaff made contact with my leg, a quick jab but it still hurts.

"Your aura is slightly protecting you, not fully though… I can give you some of my Aura, but we should wait until we get home." She advised, as she was already packed up. My leg was already feeling better, it still hurts touching it, but it was going away fast.

"Is this normal?" I asked, catching Jasmine looking at Aurelia. " _Is it?"_ I stressed.

"Look, Jaune. We'll talk about it when we get home I-" I interrupted Jasmine.

"Is it!? Please, just tell me if this is normal!" Aura was needed to become a basic huntsman right? Aurelia had spent some time explaining it to me, I was amazed I was only learning this just a few hours ago. "Well?"

"No, Jaune it isn't. Please, we need to get home before you start to panic. We're outside of town, remember?" I held back, Jasmine was right. Aurelia was drained and exhausted, I still had Crocea Mors with me at least.

"I got you." I assured Aurelia. "I...sorry."

"It's not your fault, we'll have Jasmine try to unlock the rest of it when we get back home." We were halfway there at least, as we managed to cross the open gates. No one paying attention to the three of us, I guess it was a common sight to see me limp home after training.

* * *

" _As your fathers before you,_

 _By Questing or by Knowledge:_

 _Have striven to melioration_

 _Of both self and those around you_

 _Improving lives, rather than just saving them._

 _As you stand now,_

 _Young...Knight_

 _As life and her challenges grow evermore._

 _Let your soul guide you to what is right._

 _Charge Forth!_

 _Do not look_

 _BACK!_

Jasmine stood in a heroic pose, her left arm stretched outwards. Possibly in some vain to cut away the nervousness I can still feel around me.

We managed to clear enough space in the living room for this. I still felt the same throughout it all, how was I messing this up? I couldn't catch the sigh that left me, Jasmine seemed just as confused, which was just as rare. Aurelia was going through her scroll to find any instances of this.

"I feel...slightly different?" the white glow around me at least told me I had some type of Aura.

"You-" Jasmine managed to fall onto the couch, next to Aurelia. "You managed to drain nearly all of mine."

"I-i did? Crap, i'm sorry!" the glow soon faded, Jasmine shook her head.

"Save that for mom, if she heard what you just said." Jasmine leaned in, watching Aurelia search for any more similar events like this. "Aure and me, managed to activate a minimal amount of your Aura, much of it is still locked for some reason. It'll still protect you."

"H-agh!" Gracieux had managed to find me before I could blink, a soft glow covered my chest, even if I was still pushed back. "Warn. Me. Atleast." I managed to breathe out.

"Protect you somewhat." Jasmine corrected. "What'd you find?"

"Ads for a special lotion that can unlock someone's Aura, someone from Vale who claimed aliens unlocked his Aura and wanted him to warn people of 'planet-x', singles within your area right now; What type of stuff do you search up on your scroll Jaune?" I shot up.

"Hey!-" my hand managed to find the scroll in question within my pocket, the obvious snickering coming from his sisters. "...My scroll's clean, I don't want to have mature ad pop up while I'm browsing on my phone." I tried to reason. It failed.

"Suuure." Aurelia commented, as she soon got off her scroll. "On a more serious note: I can't find anything about this happening with Aura. It seems you're a special case. You have Aura, it's just that you seem to need multiple activation to even get it working."

Was that a good or bad thing? It had to be a good thing because of how unexplored this is, what if I was able to do things not even regular huntsmen can do?... Then again, it's also a bad thing.

"You can help me unlock the rest of it right?" I asked, as they soon went quiet.

"Guys? You _can_ help me unlock the rest of it right? Aure? Jas? Guys….?"

A solid minute passed before Jas spoke. "It's more than likely that we can't repeat the same ritual to activate your Aura. We'd need the rest of the family, Saphron and Je-" Aurelia stopped her.

"What she was saying is, Saphron is visiting soon, so we can ask her to help unlock your Aura for you!" Aurelia corrected.

" _She's_ coming as well, isn't she?" I already knew why.

"Yeah, she _is_ family after all." Jasmine answered, the two of them looking at each other. It wasn't hard to figure out what they were thinking.

"Yeah, Family." Family would at least be more subtle about some things…

"Jaune, you're starting to mope again." another painful flick.

"Oooow, stop that. Why doesn't my aura protect against that?" the pain went away fast.

"Not even Aura will protect you against an older sister!" Aurelia proclaimed, She definitely binged the Mistral channels again.

Managing to fight back the sweatdrop, Saphron would help no matter what. Everyone in the family would...just not in the way I would like them to.

"We need to move everything back, Mom's going to be home soon." A collective nod was shared.

"Hey Jaune." Jasmine helped with the couch. "When is Alex coming back?"

"Should be within the week." She had to be, we weren't done training, and she even mentioned she has something in store when we continue training. "I'll text her." It wasn't a certain, but she tends to text back the next day or so.

"Are you...okay with this by the way?" Jasmine whispered, my confusion managed to prompt her to continue on. "With _her_ coming back?" avoiding Aurelia's hearing range.

"I'm fine with it." the shift in her gaze was enough to sense her doubt. "It's not like she actually followed through to her threats, I would know better than anyone." _You could at least say her name._

"And when she hears that you're going to the same Academy as her?" a soft thud echoed through the room, the cushioned chair barely missing my foot.

"I thought she was attending Shade!" I managed to whisper back to her ferociously.

"No, she _visited_ Shade. You were too busy gushing over Alex buying you a hoodie, to hear me!"

"It was _Pumpkin Pete!_ , I would of had to send in 100 box tops otherwise." a mountain of sugar that high would be impossible for even the combined efforts of Apricot, Primrose, and Sepia to conquer. "You weren't complaining when I put it on."

"It does look cute on you...that's besides the point, what will you do when she threatens to drain your Aura once you tell her the news?" I froze. I didn't have a plan for this, I could try to tell her and spend an hour trying to calm her down...though I'd have to keep her away from any kitchen knife if I did.

"O-ok. Hey Jas, how much does bullet-resistant glass cost…?" I could tell her behind, I just had to be behind a foot thick wall.

"From one end of this room to the other, about… 5,000 Lien?" Oh.

Trying to survive would be a lot harder than I thought. "Hey Aure-"

"First: You're terrible at whispering Jaune." Aurelia started as she sat back down on the realigned couch. "2nd, It's actually 25,000 Lien. Unless you can get Alex to loan you some money,you'll have to figure out a new plan, we'll make sure she doesn't kill you at least."

"Couldn't you hold her back?" I asked.

"We'll try to, but you know it'll only be for a few seconds." Maybe I could tell her over the phone- no wait. That wouldn't be good, maybe Dad or Mom can talk to her. Yeah that won't work either.

"Oh god i'm going to die." Sinking back onto the couch a sigh left me, defeated before I could go to Beacon. "Hey Jess, when my time comes, can you at least say I died fighting a titan grimm?, or something manlier than dying to my twin?"

"I can say you died to a pack of Beowolfs at best. Got run over by a moped going 50 at worst." Jess tried to assure, not that it helped much.

"Can she actually take away my Aura?" I tried to ask Aure, as she shook her head.

"She'll only break it constantly, draining your soul out of you." She assured.

Great.

* * *

 **?**

"Status?" I asked, the darkness in the room was only being held to the corners with the illuminated map of the world.

"Which language do you want it in?" Came the question I wanted to hear.

"Surprise me."

" _Verfickte scheiße"_ That lightened my mood slightly, though I still felt a smoke break coming soon.

"Good to know nothing changed, Normal day for them after all. Any updates?"

"To the North, Atlas appears to be working on a new generation of robots. Atlesian Knight-200s. Most likely: Network Based Drones. Dual blades and a standard dust-powered rifle."

Atlas and it's love of dust. Rolling my eyes at the thought. "Anything else?"

"The White Fang attacked a Schnee-"

"Important news." I stressed.

"One of them defected mid-way into the mission" She noted, pouring out the last of the bottle's contents into both of our cups. "We're out again."

"It seems not all the White Fang has been radicalized yet, Like old times."

"Got it, Baka Alex."

"I'm only 25. What's the other news?" I managed to ask while glaring at the white haired specialist..

"Your Knight in Shining Armor is still waiting for that rifle, what do you plan on giving him?" A few more weeks and he'll be under the watchful eyes of Ozpin.

"Something reliable, and won't jam even under the harshest of conditions." I answered, of course I didn't want to spoil him too much.

"If you followed my suggestion you could have stopped him before he even asked." Rhia commented.

"Sucking him off isn't going to change his mind, he'd probably die from shock."

"That's one way to stop him at least. If he doesn't die, he can at least deal with his hidden lust for you."

"He doesn't have any for _me_." He did mention and hung out with a few people at his old school, they were the more likely options.

"He loves to stare, I can feel those eyes piercing through~." Her tone tone reached a sing song voice..

"He doubts himself, initiation at beacon will either make or break him. Either way, I will still be here for him when he needs me. It's nothing more than just teenage hormones at best." Did that sound a bit creepy? "Startup the engine, we will head back after we're done here."

"Wonder how the blonde's doing." I wondered as well.


	14. Target Practice

Another shot echoed through the rain, this time the rain had bounced for a fraction of a second from the shot.

" _...Hit!"_ Rhia voiced out, to the side of me, a scope "Your aim is off."

"That's the 5th time." Alex counted, getting up from her seat. "Put down the rifle, we'll try with something smaller." She opened another case, stepping to the side allowing me to see it.

I could tell it was a pistol off the bat, _I'm not that bad at guns._ It had to be on the smaller end of a pistol design, the back of the handle and clip loader still an obvious separate piece even with the matte black over it. " _Easy to conceal"_ I noted.

"This right here is known as a, Pistolet Makarov, Or simply Makarov." Alex commented, placing the pistol in a pocket of her jacket before pulling it out just as fast, at first unloaded, before she grabbed a clip resting on the crate. Sliding it in almost as easily as she could play with it. "Watch." She ordered, cocking it before sliding it into her white jacket.

She stepped forward, taking out the makarov a moment later, grabbing it with both hands instead of her normal one handed grip, firing first at a filled plastic bottle causing it to explode with its red paint, advancing forward again shooting bottle after bottle. 4 bullets so far, before stopping as she unloaded the rest of her clip into 2 metallic targets equally. 8 bullets.

"Okay-" She wasn't done, throwing the clip somewhat to the side with a flick of her wrist before lifting it back up and unloading every bullet near the bulls eyes they printed on the beowolf picture. "...Please tell me you'll teach me how to reload like that." I asked, trying as hard as I could to make it sound like I wasn't begging, and probably failing at that.

"Sorry to break it to you Jaune, but you're not becoming Jaune Wick." Rhia commented, opening the cooler to bring out another bottle. Jokingly calling it water, though it's labeled 75% ABV.

"I just want to reach your level-"

"Who is to say I'm _below_ his level?" She asked, her eyes now holding a small flame in them.

"U-uh!, no that wasn't what I meant at all, I mean… I want to reach your level of...awe?!" Her glare changed to a smirk at breakneck speed, it looked too perfect on her.

"Give Jaune some space." Alex advised from the side of us, ignoring the rain soaking into her jacket and...drying nearly as fast as it got wet? "Unless you want him firing prematurely."

Was that an innuendo? "Wha-Hey!" I had to at least try and defend my pride!

"Your safety is off." She noted, pointing to the rifle. She was correct, _again_. "And with how close you two are, I won't be surprised you're getting drunk off Rhia's breath."

"I don't drink that much." Well...

Keeping my mouth closed would be the best option.

"You drank half the stock in the cooler." An unamused/annoyed Alex noted.

"Is there uh...any actual water in that cooler?" I asked.

 _ **Stare...**_

"Uh…"

 _ **Stare...**_

"7 bottles." Alex counted, still alcohol.

…

 **...**

"You drank half of it with me." Rhia pointed out.

"Jaune. Who drank more?" Alex asked. Oh no.

No, no! I'm screwed either way!

"Can't we just continue to train me?" I begged.

"Not until you choose my side." Rhia warned.

"He'll obviously choose his mentor, who he knows gave him his new weapon." It was a nice rifle, she hadn't explained what it was yet.

I realized how close they both were now, the cold radiating from Alex herself, pressing up against me, I realized only now that her jacket was somehow doing it, keeping her cooled anywhere at any time of the day as long as she held it on. Rhia's jacket was tighter on her, as she had pushed up against my other arm, it had some type of warmth to it. I was the barrier between the two, and my time was running short. _Don't Stare, Don't Stare!_

"Well...With many things considered, I don't really think either side can be blamed." I started slowly before continuing. "It's pointless to argue between siblings, since the both of you will end up still sharing things together right?"

Okay, that slightly calmed them. "Uh...Besides there's still 7 bottles left, and I want to learn everything both of you can teach me?"

"Dammit!" Rhia cursed to the side.

"Wait did I do something wrong?!"

"It's not your fault Jaune, you just made sure the correct person won the bet." Alex started to light her tobacco pipe in victory.

"What?" They planned this?

"You should of picked my side for a reason." She grumbled, handing over a different bottle she was holding onto. _95% Spirytus_ , hesitantly giving Alex the precious bottle.

"What would I get from picking your side?" I asked the annoyed Rhia.

"She'd teach you how to pilot an aircraft." Alex answered.

"...You're joking right?" That couldn't be true, it just couldn't.

Rhia looked away grumbling.

"What do I win for choosing you?" Switching to Alex.

"How to shoot accurately." She answered- I just missed my chance to learn how to be a pilot…

After a few seconds, she added on. "If we have enough time I'll teach you how to drive like in the movies." blowing a bit smoke before finishing. "If you're lucky, Rhia will teach you how to operate an armored vehicle."

I nodded, a bit glum about my missed chance still.

"Now, back to the actual training. Use that Makarov, shoot at the targets. Don't spend a minute aiming, just hold the gun still in your hands and aim, continue firing until you manage to figure out how to firmly grip your gun." Alex ordered, sitting down on the extra pairs of sandbags we stacked up. Opening the bottle with glee.

Okay, just like she taught him: Grip firmly, raise up and away from anyone else, aim.

"Aiming is useless if you jerk the gun before firing." Alex nonchalantly reminded. Right.

"Hit!" Rhia called out again.

"Keep firing!" Got it!.

Bottles first, 1st shot…

" _Miss!"_ Dammit, how? I got to keep going.

 _2nd shot._

" _Miss!"_

 _3rd…_

" _Hit!"_

 _Next bottle, two shots._

" _Hit, Miss."_ 3 bullets left, _beowolf._

" _Hit, hit...hit."_ A combo?

"Finally." I wasn't sure when I started to lose my breath, how long did I stop breathing? "So uh, let's check where I hit."

"You're capable of killing a few vodka bottles." Alex noted, examining the bullet holes. "You jerked the gun with that first shot." lifting up the bottle, a corner clearly missing while the center of it still had the black mark. "It just takes you two to three shots to do so."

Rhia had already taken the beowolf target. "You've done well kid, three bullets to the chest." There was a but coming. "But that pistol is for last ditch defense, it'll take maybe 2 to 3 clips before you even get to down a boarbatusk"

"What about the rifle?" I still had ask Alex about the rifle, handing back to her to examine it.

"This, rifle right here comes from a design older then both you and me combined. Make a comment about my age and I will burn you with this bottle." I nodded quickly, I didn't doubt her one bit. "Now, one bullet will never kill a grimm, not even the littlest one."

"This rifle right here is a rifle of usability, simplicity, sensibility, and reliability. When Atlesian rifles start to jam with all the dust and filth it picks up, remember this. Rhia, the cheap clip." unloading the currently loaded clip with the new one. "If for some reason this rifle starts to malfunction." She had paused for a moment to shoot at the remaining targets, before a sudden clicking can be heard.

"Jammed." Opening it up revealed the case somehow stuck in it. "Now, if for whatever reason you can't fix it with your hands, there's something you can do here." She unloaded the clip again, tossing it to the side, placing the butt of the rifle on the ground, aiming it away from herself. Before stomping down on the charging handle to unload the stuck case.

"Now, each bullet is made of a special mixture of dust and other things. For grimm of various sizes, a Boarbatusk will take two to three bullets to the head to kill, you can scale it up from there. Now, although I recommend using your gun for many targets at a range, I know you will have to deal with things more up close, which is why this rifle comes with a sling, if your sling breaks but you need your sword and shield. Throw it to the side, this rifle can be handled roughly. It does not care if you throw it into mud or not, if it jams, it'll become a bolt action." So that's why there was a few thousand bullets in one of the crates.

"I want you now to work on your shooting, 3 clips with the makarov first, then you can use this rifle again, when we get to your rifle I'll teach you how to shoot it so you don't hit yourself in the jaw over and over." Handing the makarov back to me, I could only nod again.

* * *

"...Agh…" Alex was correct about shooting, my jaw now stung.

"I did tell you." It went away after a moment, still wondering why it only worked sometimes.

"You did…"

"Hmm? Jaune, hand me your rifle." I did so, Alex wasted no time grabbing it. Hunching over ever so slightly as she fired what was left of the clip, before lowering it down. "This rifle is perfectly fine, so what's troubling you?"

"Am I that obvious?"

"I'm not going to lie to you by saying no." Alex had placed the rifle to the side."We'll take a break from training. Rhia will be back soon with lunch."

"Hey Alex?" I asked, gaining her attention again.

"Yes?" This was my chance.

"Do you have any...spare bullet resistant glass?" I might as well ask.

Alex stopped, turning to me. "Is someone after you?" Her voice was dead serious.

"Not- exactly." Looking around, there wasn't any other way to get around this situation. "It's my sister." Hopefully Alex would understand, and...not kill someone.

"Which?" Her voice remained to the point, though she wasn't being harsh or impatient.

"Jeanne." _Please don't laugh._

"When?" She remained even though her back still faced me.

"Uh...today at 5." With a sigh she turned to me.

"First off: A meter of steel won't stop a sibling, Jaune. Your mother will also kill me If I reinforce your room to become a doomsday bunker. You're already acutely aware of how your mom will destroy any metallic door or wall until you wake up and come down for breakfast. Second: If she's the prodigy you say she is, and her socio-" I stopped her for a moment. " _Overly Concerned Nature._ If true, It sounds like the only thing that will stop her is if you throw some of your baby pictures at her."

"That wouldn't work; she already has them all. She's going to kill me if I tell her I'm going to the same academy as her." Maybe I should prepare my grave while I have a few hours.

"Hug her."

"Huh?" I asked, unsure why she suggests that.

"Hug her from behind, and grab her weapon and throw it to the side before she can use it. Tell her once she calms down under your 'knightly strength'." Alex stated simply, but seriously as her gaze fixed itself on me. "Unless you have enough bravery to face her as you confess to her." Ow...

Nodding, I guess this was the most help I could get from her. Rhia wouldn't be able to help much, unless I needed a speedy emergency exit-actually.

"Thanks. I guess I really don't have any way out of this do I?"

Shaking her head for a sound 'no'. "Seven sisters will do that to you. You knew what you were signing up for."

"Well, eight actually."

" _Another baby?"_ She groaned, muttering some extra stuff about mom and dad, that I probably don't want to hear.

"You're the extra sister." I clarified, preparing to avoid another flick. "Calm and wise like the ones from the Mistral animated channels."

"Call me senpai, or even put the word 'notice' near that word, and you'll find a kick to the jaw."

"Got it...Onee-cha-"

"3." Alex suddenly counted.

"Uh...I'm sorry?"

"2." Pressing her steel toed boots against the dirt, lowering herself closer to the ground. She was ready to start charging after me.

"1." I booked it after that, running as fast as I could even if it meant having to risk tripping into an unseen puddle of mud. I knew my Aura wouldn't be able to handle _all_ of the force behind her kick, even with fast healing.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** No alcohol was given to Jaune during his training, don't worry. Although that would make an interesting omake. 


	15. Danger Close

**Authors Note: Thank you Zephyrdor for your suggestions as well as for reading this story!**

* * *

First was the hug. Not _the_ hug, just a warm one to welcome her back.

"Jeanne!" We all shouted together, managing to overcome the still active airship's engines.

I waited for my chance as the rest of our sisters had their turns first, softening her up in a way, well besides Jasmine who was currently causing her to turn a strawberry red as she was trying to leave her hug.

Her eyes soon landed on me as Jasmine let her go, giggling after some type of joke.

"Jaune?" A bit of a smile started to form on my lips.

"Jeanne?" I replied back, knowing exactly what she would say.

Soon embracing each other, unsure of who caved in first. Missing Jasmine's 'Carbon Copy' Joke for the most part.

"What's with that get-up?" She asked, not catching the observant glances of our older sisters.

The outfit in question is a plain grey tactical uniform with slip resistant boots, they looked almost identical to the regular clothes options and gear at an outdoors stores; with the only noticeable difference being how breathable it was in this, almost to the point that Alex had repeated herself about it until it was firmly lodged in my head now.

"I slipped and fell into some mud." It wasn't a full lie, mom would have scolded me for bringing a pound of mud back home with me every day. "Alex loaned me some of her clothes."

"They fit your exact measurements." She pointed out.

"They're her...brothers?" Her eyes narrowing slightly.

"A bubble tea shop opened up near the house recently." Saffron interrupted, snapping her out of her inquisitive fever.

" _Thank you"_ I mouthed to her, as she just nods.

"We'll head home." Aurelia said simply, already starting to walk off with the rest of our sisters.

"Aren't you coming with us?" Jeanne asked, blocking my escape path faster then I could anticipate. Hopefully she didn't feel up the Kevlar.

"Don't you think this is should be a Sisters moment?" I asked. Still attempting to process her speed.

"We'll get your favorite!." Honeydew.

"I...Fine." I accepted defeated knowing the consequences of saying no.

Looking up I could see Saffron's sweat drop from here.

* * *

Once again she was right: It was amazing, Saffron had already finished her second while Jeanne was going for her third.

"She won't kill you." Saffron spoke. I looked up from my scroll.

"Being killed is the least of my worries. Once I tell her, I would need to constantly watch my back in Beacon." Assuming I even reached Beacon first.

"I still think the Kevlar is going too far, where did you even get that?"

"I wasn't lying when I said Alex gave it to me." Although that part took a lot of convincing.

"Doesn't a Kevlar vest cost a few hundred lien?" I nodded slowly.

"So she bought it for you?" She asked.

"She actually had a spare, something about a supplier who sells her discount surplus." Alex had mentioned she had friends who could help her.

"And you really don't see why Aurelia and Jasmine are suspicious of her?" I shook my head for a no.

"We've known her for years, and she even baby sit me when I was younger." She wasn't a family friend for nothing, and I did see her from time to time growing up.

"She tends to be go vanish for a few months before coming back." Didn't many hunters do that?

"She promised me she'll stick around until I'm done with my training. She only left once for a few days." 2 days. "Aurelia and Jasmine are suspicious of her, but why don't you trust her, Saff?"

With a sigh, she nodded. "Something seems off with her, Aurelia thinks she's a black market dealer or warlord, Jasmine suspects that she's on a suicide mission to exterminate the white fang, I say it's something else entirely."

"Is it Ozpin?" I asked.

"Partly: Its her association with her. She's usually the silent type, reserved on social things but willing to get her word across when need be. You said she _panicked_ when you told her you were accepted." I nodded.

"Her eyes widened and she almost dropped her coffee. She explained that she was concerned for my safety." Ozpin couldn't be trusted were her words.

"It goes against her plans." She stated out of the blue. "Not being in control while she does whatever she _is_ doing whenever she's gone."

"I think you guys are overreacting." I could feel her gaze right now, like that time I accidentally, _ACCIDENTALLY!_ tripped and grabbed Terra the wrong way. - that was a very hard explanation. - "I can ask her, I think it's just miscommunication."

"Did she even tell you anything about herself, willingly?" Yes she did.

"Yes, since she's actually easy to talk to! She likes to wake up at 4 in the morning, drinks coffee with little sugar or milk, wear a long jacket to cover herself up, listen to rap, as well as genuinely enjoy training me!"

"Train you for what?" The both of us paused.

"Well?" Jeanne asked, holding a strawberry bubble tea cup this time.

"Alex is uh...training me to…"

"Alex is training him to be more courageous, brave and such." Saffron quickly explained.

"Thank god, Dad's constant advice on pickup lines wasn't going to work." Jeanne took her seat as she nodded in support. "Just don't stay around her too long, I don't want to see you trying to drink a single bottle."

"I'm not _that_ impressionable." The both of them exchanged glances, zero support for my side.

"We know you stare at her, Jaune." Jeanne spoke up.

"And just like with Terra: we know it's not just her hair." Saffron added.

"Guys… I told you that was an accident, I tripped and tried to grab something for support." I groaned.

"That doesn't explain why _both_ hands landed on them." Saffron countered.

"...ok look, they _were_ soft and nice, but you know I wouldn't do that stuff Saff, and Jeanne, why do all of you think I'm obsessed with seeing under her jacket?"

"I said her skirt, Jaune." Oh no. "You... _are_ at that age. I know you have your own preferences, but I think you should look a bit outside of the family-friend circle." Jeanne advised.

"You guys are focusing _way_ too much on her, What if I was actually hanging out with other ladies?" Saffron contained her laughter at the thought.

"Can't see it little bro." Jeanne commented.

"We're twins!"

"I was born 10 minutes earlier." Jeanne corrected, apparently enough time for her to claim elder role.

Saffron's scroll soon buzzed with life. All 3 of us could already guess why. "Let's get going."

Jeanne nodded, getting up after Saffron as her back faced me. Now was my chance, taking it I managed to hug Jeanne again.

"Huh? Er…. It's a little too _early_ for that don't you think?" The uncertainty in her voice suddenly rose, this was the safest place to tell her.

"Jeanne I wanted to tell you something, but even now I can't think of the right place or time to say it so I'll say it now." I spoke suddenly, catching her off guard. Public etiquette should save me right.

"This...Isn't really the place for it bro." Just like her semblance she was burning up.

"I-"

"Jaune." She tried to stop me.

"Got into Beacon…" finishing it off with a pause as she stood frozen. Minutes passed as she didn't fight back or struggle.

"How did you get in." The coldness of her voice started to deep in, I didn't want to know how deadly her eyes looked right about now.

"I. Sent a transcript in and they accepted it." Starting slowly. Resting my hands on her hips, just encase she tries to prepare her weapon.

"That... _bitch_." Her rage slowly bubbling to the surface, as I held on for dear life. "She planned this, she's going to use you…"

"No one used me, I'm doing this on my own!" I tried to explain to her.

"Who's training you?" I couldn't lie to her.

"Alex-" As she started to walk, dragging me with her. "Aurelia and Jasmine did as well!"

She stopped dead in her tracks, we were already out of the door into the plaza. "Why?" Another shift in her tone.

"I wanted to follow your steps." _What do I do?_

"And go against me?" Hurt of betrayal running through her voice. "You remember what you promised to me, right?"

"I…did it because I wanted to be the one to protect you." I finally admitted.

"..." maybe I should of faced her when I confessed. "Yet you're still trying to protect yourself from me."

"Eh-"

First it took me off my feet, then came the sounds. The pain in my stomach grew sharply, now feeling like a stab rather than a bull rush turned goring. She just- shot… **Me!**

"Kevlar? That can barely stop 1 of my shells, Jaune. Tch, your Aura's already been activated. Poorly as well, which one of our sisters did this?" She barely left me any time to even stagger back up.

"Uh! Jeanne! Oum, please just calm down. I can explain, Erh… Put down the gun!" A sudden reeling of some type of part in her gold trimmed rifle gave me her answer: No.

 _ **Duck!**_

I did so, almost dropping on my back to the floor. The voice was a shout that was almost entirely defeated by the second shot of her rifle. If I stood to her side, I would of been able to clearly see into the certain glass parts of her hunters rifle, hundreds of smaller gears powered by dust to try and pump bullets into me.

"Stay still!" She shouted, raising her now readied rifle again; Obviously I did the exact opposite.

"Not until you calm down!" I yelled back, passing straight pass Saffron, who I knew wouldn't have a chance to stop her without her weapon.

" _ **I AM CALM!"**_ Her voice echoing through the sudden alleyway I took trying to lose her.

"You really aren't!" I cried out, the sound of her rifle howling only amplified in loudness in the narrow way. "If you were _**calm!**_ You wouldn't be trying to _**KILL**_ me!"

"Just. Stand. Still!" My landing was flawed, after jumping after a pile of fallen trash cans; I somehow managed to land my right foot on a well placed empty beer bottle, for it effectively tripping me.

The next shot flew over head, a blinding sky blue flame. My right arm soon catching on fire but it didn't hurt?

Something felt wrong with this, it's flame suddenly shifting to a golden hue, its center being fueled by something from me…

 _Aura_.

With what strength I could think to use in that situation, I managed to put it out; somehow missing the fact I had already gotten up and started to run, taking a sharp turn to the right.

" _What are my options? Well, I still had my makarov… No that would be too dangerous here. I could try and talk some sense into her… I'll have to wait till she runs out of bullets though."_ The turn I took lead down a lengthy straight street, known for family owned businesses. My family was known here thankfully, I could hide in the nearest store. Diving straight through the door.

* * *

"Welcome to the Drunken- Jaune? You know the rules-" The Bartender spoke, her voice still easy to hear past the bustling noise of this place.

"Not here to drink, erh… I just need to hide here for a bit!, Sorry Iris!" Iris nodded, pointing to a corner booth I could hide in.

A sudden pull whirled me to the side, My vision blocked by a grey fabric. It was...soft?

"Stay still, blonde. She'll find you." I did as she said.

"Rhia?" Taking a moment to realize just what she was doing, placing me right against herself as she reached for the blinds, using herself to block the view of the outside. For a moment I could see Jeanne's rifle come into view before vanishing behind the shutters.

"Shh!" right, sorry! "I saw you running, and there _is_ a _hole_ in your clothes."

"Welcome, You know the rules Jeanne." Iris spoke up as the doorbell chimed. "No weapons."

Jeanne's response was muffled by her weapon rapidly collapsing back into its compact form. "Looking for a blonde, twin of mine, 3 centimeters shorter than me, loveable, tries to act like a knight and looks like he just got shot.".

"I haven't seen Jaune today, don't you think it's a bit dangerous shooting your own twin brother?" Her footsteps came closer and closer before stopping.

"It's Aura Fire, capable of burning someone's Aura without it actually harming them." _Then what's with that first shot!?_

"...Why did you shoot your brother?"

"He activated his Aura." she stated it with such a matter of fact tone that it almost sounded like it was wrong in some way. "He's also going to Beacon, without even telling me."

"Well, he sometimes tells me that he wants to grow up to protect you." Iris spoke up, that wasn't a lie.

"I should be the one protecting him." She coldly stated, adamant even.

"What if that's the reason he wants to go to beacon?" A sudden 'huh' snapped Jeanne out of her psychotic state.

"What if he just wants to learn from the best? You can't always be there for him, it's only been a year and you'll be there for even longer. What if this town of ours gets attacked by Grimm or even worse; You're still only in your 2nd year, protecting him by keeping him from danger will just end up making him have to act without precious knowledge that might even save his life." Jeanne must of been silent for a few minutes. Hopefully Iris' words at least got to her.

"He'll get himself killed! He's attending beacon with very minimal training." Jeanne spoke, finding her rebuttal.

"Which is why you can help him. You know crushing someone's dreams is dangerous, we both remembered that day. Otherwise you might just end up hurting him again."

"I've never wanted to hurt him purposefully! It's just- He always hurts himself when he fails in training, the last time dad tried to train him, he almost lost his arm and broke half of his right side's bones. The idiot never stops as well, going on and on even when his body can't…" She…

I attempted to get up, before Rhia pulled me back in. Muffling my voice before I could even say anything. "Mph! Lmm go!"

"Quiet!" She hissed. "Don't turn this into a cliche, I can't choose to help you if you decide to walk straight into your _psychotic_ sister's _rifle range!_ Nor can I save your bones from breaking, your flesh from being cut, or your pelvis from being shattered… Tap on my shoulder twice if you're still suicidal enough to go." She gave me the final say, potentially a fatal chance to get to her, or to safely hide here to avoid her dust bullets and her training from Beacon.

"No..." Jeanne started, taking a moment to recollect herself. "I'm not destroying his dreams, he doesn't even know what his dreams are. He just watches superhero movies and imagines to himself rescuing a princess or a maiden in need. If you consider it destroying, I consider it as slapping him awake before reality breaks his fantasy."

"What makes you certain he isn't going to become one?" Iria interrupted her, ringing her to silence again. "He comes in every so often to talk to me about his goal and training, did you know he's mentioned you _every_ single time?"

"He...has?"

"He's quite popular with some of the lady bargoers here as well." There was a pause, for a moment, I could swear I heard metal slightly bending. "If you do break the fantasy he has in his head, he might just end up here; Instead of staying under your watchful eye in Beacon."

"You're…"

"He's slowly becoming noticeable to the opposite sex, I think it's his smile."

"I'll take him with me." She stated suddenly. "I'll make sure he doesn't get killed; You can come out now!" She shouted my way.

"How!" I suddenly blurted out, before Rhia sighed.

"You just gave it away." She answered, walking to the booth. Looking at the two of us - oh no. "You've been…. _ **busy**_." She said raising her rifle.

"Whoa, wait!" I protested, as she pressed the hot barrel against me.

"When you get to beacon, find me. I'll be standing there at your orientation, so you can't avoid me. Got it?" She demanded, as I nodded. "Good."

She stopped to look at Rhia, exchanging looks. "Train him so he won't die on his first day."

"No promises on him _not_ becoming a Casanova after I'm done." I shrunk back a bit feeling her glare.

"I doubt that will happen." She commented.

"wha-Hey!" I shouted, insulted.

"When he walks home: Count how many women say hi to him by name." She pointed out, not accepting my silent pleas for her to stop.

"What are you trying to get at?" She demanded, I tried one last time to try and plea to her to at least change the topic.

"Well. Iria over there seems to know him by name. It seems he has a few more connections then you knew." Rhiannon calmly said, ignoring the rifle that was practically aiming at her.

"Uh...Aure expects us at the house soon?" I tried to but in. Jeanne's glare soon refocused back onto me. "Please don't shoot me again."

"We're headed home." She said, dragging me along.

"I can walk!" I voiced to her, trying to catch my footing but failing.

"Bye Jaune!" Iria waved. Along with a bit of chatter from the rest of the amused bar goers saying their goodbyes as well. "Oh and, come by again once you're able to hold your beer! We're in need of a little 'talk' later."

"Agh! Not helping!" I cried out, feeling Jeanne tug even harder against my shirt.

* * *

The trek back home was filled with a tense unease.

"What did Alex train you in?" Jeanne asked, and with a calmer tone that hid her level of anger.

"Alex taught me the basics: Stamina and basic routines, how to aim and shoot, the latest thing she's taught me is how to handle and maintain my rifle." I didn't try hiding anything from her, she would have found out anyways.

"She gave you a gun?" She asked incredulously.

I nodded, carefully pulling out the unloaded pistol. "She called it a Makarov, I only have a single clip on me."

"This will protect you against a street thug at best." She mentioned, examining it with intent.

"Huh? There's no dust." I looked at her.

"Is that a bad thing?" I asked with concern.

"Dust has a distinct smell, you could smell it on a weapon that uses it. This has none of it, did she tell you that?"

"She...did?" Rhiannon mentioned something about it.

"You can't rely on her guns if they're not going to have dust in them.-"

"The rifle she gave me uses dust!" I spoke up, as I remembered how she talked about the average amount of bullets needed to kill a boarbatusk; Alex said it was three." Jeanne nodded.

"And how many bullets can you carry?" She asked. Doing some type of math in her head.

"30 to 100 in a clip, and she recommends I carry four to five clips." Although she did not mention if she meant the 30 or 100 round clips.

"You still need something in close quarters, and no- Not a shotgun, or a sub-machine gun." Jeanne noted, trying to make sure I could cover all ranges.

"Well. Aure and Rhia are teaching me how to use Crocea Mor. I can actually hold out against them… for 3 minutes." I avoided touching on how Rhia loves to land hits every time I made a mistake on my swing or thrust.

"They won't be there for you in Beacon." She stopped for a second. "I wonder if Yatsu will be willing to help."

"Who?" I asked.

"Someone you may meet. Oh and one thing, If you… bump into a bunny girl. Ask if her name is Velvet, if she says yes… I want you to _sigh_ caress her ear and whisper your name to her." She continued walking, mumbling something about someone named Coco?

"Uh...Sure?" I said back.

The rest of the walk was mostly in silence…mostly. Rhia _had_ to ask her to count how many ladies said hi to us as we walked home.

* * *

 **AN: This took long, leave a review if you want to help me write this story. Until next time!**


	16. Sudden Strike

**AN: 5k in this chapter alone. That's something I thought was nice. Enjoy!**

"Blonde!" = Normal Dialogue

 _"My name is Jaune!"_ = Inner Thoughts.

 _ **"Ladies love it!" = Alter Thoughts.**_

 **"With enough time you'll want to say my name every chance you get." = Alter Dialogue.**

* * *

Another shot echoed through the forest, and this time it met the bulls' eye.

I caught the emptied clip before it could touch the ground, tossing it to the growing pile of them. The dummy Ursula Alex brought in had to be an adult one, as it had to be 2 heads taller than me fully standing.

"You're slowing down!" Rhia shouted from the sideline, as she tossed two more clips my way.

"I finally got the aiming down!" I told her. Relieved I finally had it down.

"Aim means nothing if you take a minute to shoot." She walked towards me. "Keep shooting."

"Uh...Why are you standing right next to me?" The both of us exchanged glances.

"Alex, throw me your jacket." Alex looked up at her before throwing it.

"Don't get alcohol on it, Jaune's already busy for the rest of the month." Rhia caught it with ease, as she slipped it on with ease.

"Wait. Why would I have to deal with that?" I asked. Watching Alex straighten out her red shirt.

"Training you isn't cheap. Although I won't charge you for any of this. I expect some type of recompense." She paused for a moment. "I could use someone to help me around the house."

"I'm not a butler!" At least she wouldn't force me to wear a suit.

"You're not being truthful." Rhia began, as her smirk meant trouble. "I can see you as the perfect house husband. It's not like you'd complain about doing the laundry for both of us- Careful. The scent will be very obvious on you if you try anything."

"Have some faith in me at least! I grew up with 7 sisters who forced me to do their laundry-"

"Ah, So you know what to look for when doing hers."

I slumped in defeat.

"It's okay Jaune. I'd trust you to do my laundry." Alex spoke nonchalantly.

"Can I please do something else besides _that._ I'm okay with helping you clean something or just carrying something from here to there, and I'm even fine with being a delivery boy. Just _please_ don't make me so that." I spoke up, as a- 'Knight in training', as Mom called me. If I accepted _that_. she would have a field day in the future when it comes to teasing.

"It isn't your choice." Alex notes. Reaching for her pipe once again.

"Hey Alex." A 'Hmm?' Came from her.

"Yes, Jaune?"

"How about a challenge?" She looked up from her scroll.

"If I can keep up with Rhia's training, you'll have to quit smoking for a week." Both of them stared at me.

"And if you lose?" She asked.

"I'll...Do your laundry, and not complain about it." It was worth a shot to get her to stop.

"You'll only have a week to do it, as you're headed to beacon soon."

"I'll do it within the week, no matter how big and how messy. Even if I have to come over at midnight."

They both hide their amusement terribly. I could tell Rhiannon wanted to join in, She might as well rig the training. But I still didn't want to see her smoke this much.

"You're ready Jaune?" I nodded, reloading the rifle.

"Mag dump on that Ursula!" She shouted. Attempting to imitate Alex's deeper commanding voice. Going as far as to strike her left hand out to give me what I can assume is inspiration?

I held the rifle, as each shot lifted the rifle barrel upwards, as I wrestled it back down. Going even further as to hit the vital points, limbs, the head, and obviously it's center.

"Reload!" Grabbing the clip and using it to unload the empty click was getting easier, as I took care to not jab myself in the chin like last time.

"Switch!" Letting gravity do part of my work was helpful. This time pulling out the Makarov.

"Again!" I followed her orders, getting through the 14 bullets or so as fast as I could, flicking the empty clip to the side. I had to thank Rhia about that later.

Reaching for the new clip, but it wasn't there. I grabbed the whole pouch to feel it, it was just gone.

"CQC!" Wha- I barely missed Rhia's punch. She had done this before every so often, so it was to say: She always won.

Her smirk was demoralizing. She probably had a plan to get me off- Thank Oum she didn't hear that part. She'd just tease me or far worse, and fake an 'invitation' to do it.

She threw a quick jab. I was out matched if I went at her directly, but I still needed to win! To the right of us was thankfully one of the spare wooden swords among the 9 that were broken by… their near borderline torturous training.

I dove for it. Not caring about the mud for now, as my mom is going to kill me anyways.

Gripping it tightly I aimed it at her as I managed to break her smirk, aaand then it came back. As she unsheathes what I can only hope is a dull knife. - You didn't teach me how to counter this!

She charged, as I thrust, if only she were a bit slower instead of hitting her hair I would've gotten a direct hit. She had slashed at my right arm. I was thankfully correct, and it was a dull blade, but there was now a red line going across it… is that lipstick?

I turned to face her. It was suicide to charge. She's probably been doing this since I was a kid; not like I'll say that to her.

"You didn't say we'd do CQC today." I spoke up, if I could distract her I could hopefully have enough time.

"A life as a hunter will be full of surprises." She responded.

"I taught you were training me as a soldier. What's with the title change?"

"One encourages kids to fight for glory, and well the other-" Alex interrupted her. "Right."

Inching enough away I managed to get close to where she sat a few minutes ago. Grabbing her prized bottle.

"Jaune!" She shouted as she realized what exactly I grabbed.

"If you're going to play dirty. I might as well join along." I tried to feel up the amount still in the bottle. Half full. "We both know this bottle means the world to you. Surrender and I'll give you it back." I demanded.

"Or what?" She countered. I couldn't read her emotions right now. - Why do you have to look _**this**_ beautiful with a cold poker face! -

"I'll! I'll!... Drink it all!" Her eyes widened. Soon turning into a deadly glare, as I fell into a death wish I started to open it with one hand.

"Don't-!" She warned.

"Surrender!" I yelled. "Drop the knife and your precious will be safe!"

The bottle was near my lips. Was I really going to do this? This would… count as an indirect wouldn't it? I really needed to stop letting my sisters drag me to watch Mistral Romances.

She started to walk towards me calmly. I raised my sword again at her.

"Stop! Don't- Come. Near!" She edged closer. Soon standing right in front of me. She was too close.

"Drink it." She practically whispered to me.

"..." I wasn't sure how to respond to her.

"Drink it if you mean it, and I want to see you swallow it." Both her hands had grabbed both of my arms. I wasn't sure how but the effort she placed into her whisper was-.

My thoughts were cut short as the struggle for the bottle found me on the losing end. She forced it closer to me. The both of us were pressed together. With how strong her glare was I'm not sure if I could even look her in the eye.

She slowly leaned in, and I closed my eyes-.

Jerking my head back in pain I opened my eyes again to see Alex rubbing her hand.

"You're both idiots." She sighs for a moment. "Holding someone's prized possession as hostage is...A dangerous option Jaune, If I hadn't stopped the both of you." She looked away for a moment. "Where did you learn to use that option? I know Rhiannon didn't teach you."

"Well… It just came to me. Maybe it was just naturally going to happen?"

Rhia snatched the Spirityus from my hands again, as she leaned in close to my ear. "Do That again, and I promise you won't walk for a week after I'm done with you. Got it?"

I nodded slowly.

"Lustful idiots." Alex commented. "Jaune. Seeing as you don't have much time left here. I know something that can be done."

"Sure!" I said eagerly.

"Dodge." Wha-

Suddenly Aurelia was in front of me in a second, Jasmine to my left, as I got a feeling Jeanne was behind him, if that whining noise didn't give it away. I did what I did best. I took Alex's advice to heart, and dove for it.

Mom was _really_ going to kill me this time. The mud on my shirt was heavy enough to weigh me down while I had no chance to think about it any further, as that whining noise came back along with a 'click'. Also my back was on fire!

I rolled to face, and shield against Jasmine's quarterstaff. I'm still amazed grand dad's shield still held up against heavy strikes.

I rolled again. More mud started to build around my shoulders, as I managed to stumble back up. This time managing to block a direct shot from Jeanne's Aurafire.

"Watch your fire, you ditz!" I'm fairly certain Jasmine shouted.

"Move out of the way next time!" I knew Jeanne was the one to shout that.

I managed to bash my currently flaming shield against Jasmine. "Sorry!" I cried out noticing the flames on her shirt start to change to a navy blue, or was that purple?

The slushing mud behind me gave it away as I tried my best to shield myself from Maelstrom Blonde. To find I was _half_ successful. The heel of Aure's Hybrid Halberd / … Transformer? Had locked under my shield, and then a sudden hiss from the staff of hers pulled - well _**DRAGGED!**_ Me across some more of the mud to where Her and Rhia stood.

Oh. Also Rhiannon had equipped some type of face mask, metallic and custom made. I would have wondered if that was a gas mask or not, if I didn't also realized she had gotten into her 'kicking stance' thankfully I didn't see her pull out her main weapon. She called it "SZRK"? No clue what that meant.

I was still being dragged as I raised up Crocea Mor. Preparing to strike when the time was right, even if it meant I was giving away what type of attack I was preparing to counter them.

More sloshing behind me gave away they were closing in. I suddenly struck Crocea into the ground, trying in vain to either slow myself or at least get _some_ support to get back up.

That failed, as the mud eventually turned to some hidden stone as Crocea Mor was ripped from my grip. I had only one other option, and that was to loosen the straps that helped me handle my shield.

Somehow I got back up for a moment before uncontrollably tackling Rhiannon. She had tried to trip me but mud below her must of slid as she moved.

"Mmmmph!" I shouted a muffled surprise. As I tried to wrestle against Rhiannon's insane grip and strength. "I'll give one of my famous massages if someone can free me from Rhia!" I blurted.

A sudden kick made me fly - No I'm serious - at least three feet from them.

Looking up I could see...Alex had been the one to kick me, as- I realized I'm going to be both masseur and Butler to Alex after this is done, and… The dark glares that took over my sisters faces spelled out how bad I messed up.

"U-uh…" I stepped back. Each step brought me backwards, but was followed by a step forward for them. "Guys c'mon? You look like you're all going to murder me!"

I could run… No they'd catch up with ease. Rhiannon alone could probably catch me in a minute while Jeanne would snipe my legs. I did have a combat knife left, and a smoke grenade.

I pulled out the knife. They were closing in step after step.

Jeanne had to be the one who slid Crocea Mor across the mud. As I picked it up just in time to block Maelstrom Blonde again. This time charging at her as she pulled away from my shield and tried to come around with a long swing, but I stopped right in front of her with my sword to her neck.

For a moment she seemed disappointed but there was also something else there as she stopped her swing. I kissed her cheek as a way to say thanks as she lit up redder than the moon.

One down.

Jasmine was quicker. I swung my sword down to parry her staff as she surprised me with how she had forced it back up, but this time she held a white replica of Crocea in her right hand while her left remained at her back.

I blocked her next attack. A quick thrust from her as she played with Crocea as if it was a rapier. She was too quick to keep pace, and we both knew she was more agile too.

I gripped the shield tighter then before. Spending the time to block rapid succession of attack after attack. She was pushing up. We both knew she trying to corner me, or at least figure out a strategy. Either way, if I remained on the defensive I would lose by default.

I threw Crocea at her. The shield part anyways, and I thrust my sword to her. Trying to summon what little protective Aura I could, as I caught the blade with my left hand while it didn't go cleanly through my hand… A sharp stinging enveloped my left palm…Ow…

Her eyes widened as I aimed my sword at her chest. Shaking to practically trembling with pain. "Yeah… It hurts." I admitted to her. "But it was worth it."

The whining noise came back. I groaned in both pain and exhaustion. I turned to Jeanne whose musket was aimed dead on me… Okay, I'm 'dead' if I try and swing or even run. She has the powers of a 'tsundere' whatever Jas meant.

I dropped my sword as I brought up my hands to surrender. I was facing away from her, as I managed to pull the ring on the smoke grenade. Jasmine's eyes stared directly into mine as I smiled before turning to meet Jeanne's musket pressing against my pumpkin peach jacket.

"I give u- Ow Ow! Hot!" I cried out as compared to the fire her gun spat out, the metal was probably as hot as the sun!

"You're… getting better." She started. She didn't seem intent on lowering her rifle.

"I learned from the best." I tried to say in a normal voice. "Please...Lower the rifle now…" I asked.

"Why? Your smoke will pop and you'll try to finish me with your knife." She pointed out my plan exactly.

 _" **Step left."**_ A voice said as I did so, the smoke popped at that moment as she also pulled the trigger. A deafening bang erupted from her rifle.

 _" **Get closer."**_ The voice advised again as I did so.

 _ **"Grab her trigger hand. Place your other hand on her back."**_ I wasn't sure who was saying this or why she hadn't reacted yet but I did so.

The smoke cleared quicker than I expected as my left hand gripped her right while my right hand held her close. Confusion was clearly written on her face.

"Huh!?" She asked.

"I- **N** e **ve** r **want** t **o** h **a** rm **you."** I said to her with a smile. Those words left my mouth without me thinking about them beforehand. I didn't expect myself to say it, but I knew I still meant it.

An alarm soon beeped to life, as Alex nodded in satisfaction. "Congratulations Jaune. You managed to not only survive 3 minutes against your sisters, but also managed to out maneuver, plan, and even disarm them. How do you feel?"

I looked at the 5 of them: Aurelia had been able to teach what she could when it came to overpowering and committing to the final strike, Jasmine had always shown analytical observation can change the tide of a fight, Rhiannon of course had to and I quote "Teach me how real spec ops do it.", Jeanne… Well she still has her time training me in Beacon, and of course Alex…

I wasn't sure how to describe her even now. A foreign commander whose life has seen high and hell? A lady who is on the rankings of personal bad asses I know? Rhiannon would of course include herself around Alex's level or even a tad bit higher. Though I knew something I could agree on to describe her, as my mentor. Even if she was brutal at times.

"Well. I'm going to miss doing this." I admitted. "I somehow through sheer luck defeated my three sisters, but don't you think that was a little too much Jeanne?" I asked.

"And rubbing against Rhiannon isn't?" She teased.

"Wha- HEY!" I shouted, as Rhia shrugged.

"You did look like you were going to kiss her." Jasmine noted.

"Why were you guys hiding a bush?" I countered.

"Your sisters wanted to see how you handled being alone with two beautiful ladies." Alex spoke up. I stared at the three of them as they looked away to not meet my eyes. "Jeanne wanted to assess how tight of a lease she'll need you on in Beacon."

I stared at Jeanne. "I can't let dad's advice get to your head. I can't let the Arc's name 'spread' wildly in the school, and we don't want some poor lady-"

"I get it!" I shouted trying to stop her. I guess Rhia's advice got to her. "Look, I don't plan to have kids... **Yet."** I could feel it again. That same feeling and voice… It was in me, and it wanted to… guide me?

"Yet?" Jeanne eyes narrowed.

"... **W** e **ll**." I started? "It's not **impossible**. I **u** n **der** sta **nd** why Dad wanted **7 kids.** In **fact** **I want atleast the same."** I could feel my aura slightly ripple here and there. Whatever this thing was only came out when my aura was...activated.

" _ **Correct!"**_ A voice I now realized was the exact same to my own spoke up with clarity.

" _How?"_ I asked, as he-me? Would know instantly what I meant.

" _ **I really don't know. All I do know is that you need to change your act."**_ Huh? " _ **I want the best for both of us, and you need to get**_ _ **laid**_ _ **."**_ He had to be based off my eg-

WHAT?!

" _ **I suggest Alex."**_ He continued on.

" _I haven't even kissed anyone yet. I think going that far too early is-"_

" _ **Dangerous? Alex is dangerous, and we both know that. Hmm. Ask her out on a date then."**_

" _How!?"_

" _ **First off: Calm down, and second. Jeanne is asking you something."**_

"Remnant to Jaune." I blinked and notice Jeanne who had her rifle aimed at me. "What was that about Velvet?" She asked.

"I-" crap what did I say?! "I said- I'd love to know her, but… If you told me to greet her like you said, then it would seem like I'm flirting with her."

She lowered her musket as I sighed in relief.

"Coco is going to have a field day with you." She grumbled.

"Before you kill him, remember we got a reservation today!" Aurelia pointed out. "Rhiannon you're also invited!"

She nodded, as Jeanne finally placed away her musket. "You better get changed."

I looked at myself. At this point I had a shining armor of hardened mud and a crown of dirt, as I realized I really overdid it now.

"We will head to my house." Alex spoke up for me. "It's closer and he needs a bath anyways." I nodded.

"Okay. We'll see you guys at the restaurant!" Jasmine waved as the three of them walked off, as I walked with Alex and Rhia.

"You did well today." Alex complimented.

"Yeah. I didn't expect myself to actually win." I admitted.

"You won because you were taught by a set of experts." She pointed out. "Also you planned ahead."

"I expected you to boast about yourself." I noted, as she shrugs.

"It's obvious that I am the best, so I don't need to bring up what you know by heart." She casually stated.

"You are the best at what you normally do."

"What does that mean?" She asked. Bumping shoulders with me.

"Nothing!" I smiled.

"That's why I didn't teach you how to be Jaune Wick just yet." She said, as Alex reached for her pipe but placed it away.

"You're not going to smoke?" I asked. Surprised she wasn't.

" _ **She does look beautiful even when she smokes."**_

" _Sh-Shut-up!"_

" _ **Doesn't she look even hotter when she does it?"**_

" _But it's not healthy!"_

" _ **Thinking about the long term I see. You're right. Can't let your wife smoke while you plan for kids."**_

" _Wife?!"_

" _ **She's very independent, and reliable."**_ That part is true.

" _ **Besides she's at the perfect age."**_

" _I'm not even 18 yet!"_

" _ **You will be a Hunter soon, and they're considered adults by law."**_

I could marry her- No! " _I haven't even asked her out on a date! Besides she might refuse or just think I'm a kid still."_

" _ **You slept in the same bed as her."**_ He-I pointed out.

" _That's because Dad renovated the guest room as his man cave."_

" _ **That didn't stop you from cuddling her."**_

" _I did? Wait I did?!"_

" _ **Calm down in the yelling, also it's likely you did."**_

" _I...ok. Also what should I call you?"_

There was a pause.

" _ **That's a good question: Alter I guess?"**_ Made sense.

" _Ok so Alter. What part of my mind are you?"_

" _ **That's simple. I'm the you, that you desire to be. Think of a mixture of all your inhibitions broken. Everything you want to say but can't, also I can swear."**_

" _Please don't."_

" _ **I will."**_

" _No-"_

" _ **You really think of Alex in a lot of lights. Amazing, Beautiful, Competent, Fu-"**_

" _That's enough!"_ I tried to hold back the reddening of my face.

" _ **-able"**_ he finished.

" _I want to say you're wrong."_

" _ **But you know I'm right."**_

" _At Least you're just in my mind."_

" _ **I'll help you of course."**_

" _Thanks."_

" _ **But just for once. Follow one of my suggestions."**_

" _Should I even ask?"_

" _ **Compliment the both of them on how great they are."**_

"Hey Alex, Rhia." I said. They both glanced at me. "...You both are amazing you know, and before you think I'm just saying this because you helped me to where I am now. I really found it awesome and...breathtaking even how the both of you can do what you do and make it look like it's the easiest thing in the world to do."

"Thank you Jaune." Alex said simply, and we both knew she wouldn't be someone who would say much. "It means a lot to hear that." She said.

As for Rhia. I blinked for a moment as I had felt her do something to my cheek.

"If you wanted a kiss you should've just asked." She said as we soon made it to Alex's house.

"I wasn't trying to- Thank you though." I said in a mumble.

"You already know where the shower is." She said, oh and wash that cut of yours. I'll grab the RedSpray. Oh no.

I nodded as I walked to the bathroom.

* * *

Stepping out of the shower I sighed relieved. As I looked I noticed one of them left some spare clothes for me. I could hear the washer right outside the room.

I nodded to myself as I started to get dressed.

The door soon opened before I could get a shirt on. "Uh?" I managed to say as Rhia walked in.

"You can finish getting dressed outside." She said simple as she started to undo her tight fitting jacket. Unstrapping three straps hooked to the right side of her jacket before undoing the zip.

"U-uh!" I said as she took off her jacket, and she didn't care about me standing right there. I of course walked out.

"Oh and Jaune." I hesitantly turned back to her as a few articles of clothing landed on me. Jacket, shirt, uuuuh...I can't finish that list. "Throw it in the bin on top of the washer, thanks!" She said closing the door.

I did so, but I knew it wasn't the end of that. A familiar white -cold- coat landed on my head.

"My coat only needs to be washed. It dries out fast." Alex voiced, as I nodded. She placed some extra clothes-stuff in my arms, as she walked off. I...really want to question why they're so okay with me handling their laundry.

" _ **Househusband Jaune?"**_

" _Shut it."_ I groaned. Realizing I had to sort through them. Thanks guys!

" _ **Hey at least you get to know their preferences and size."**_

I tried to ignore alter as I managed to sort them out almost.

" _ **You do know you also have to-"**_

" _Their underwear, yeah. I…"_

" _ **You have the option to 'learn' more about them but you choose not to?"**_

" _It's-"_

" _ **Rude? Inappropriate? Please. We both know they won't mind. It's probably because of how much they trust you, that you have this chance now."**_

I sighed again as I built up my willpower and grabbed the top bra.

" _ **D. I'd say that's Rhiannon's"**_

I lost the battle as I could feel my face irradiate red, as I quickly placed hers in the washer and set it to delicate.

" _ **Aw. You didn't even-"**_

I shook my head. "No." I murmured to myself. "I can't do this." I said. Realizing my hand had found its way to…

" _ **Oh. That has to be Alex's. Black looks great on her-"**_

I shook my head silently as I picked them up, and that's when I did notice something. I picked up Alex's hat, as there was a simple symbol on the inside of it. A single open eye outline. It was probably the size of my thumb at most, but it still felt out of place.

" _What do you think of this?"_ I asked Alter.

" _ **Could be her symbol. Or just some weird brand mark."**_

" _It feels weird to look at."_ I noted.

The bathroom door creaked open soon enough. "Better." Rhia groaned as she stretched.

Placing the hat in the washer I realized I had left Alex's garments on the to-.

"They're big aren't they?" Rhia questioned me as I tried to turn around, but she held me from behind before I could do so.

"You're drunk." I said trying to break free.

"You're the only one Alex has chosen to train." She said as I stopped. Her hands grabbing mine before guiding them to the last garments of hers. "I can see why you like her so much."

"I really don't-" I tried to tell her as her guiding hands made me put mine on Alex's…

"You'll be gone from home for a while, so I'll tell you a few things." I slowly nodded. "Alex does care for you, and don't forget that. She may not show it, but you can guess how she might act if she hears you get in trouble or are in a life or death situation."

I nodded. "Hey Rhia?"

"Yeah Jaune?"

"...Can you…" I looked away from them. "Take my hands off them?"

"Make me." This had to be some type of payback. "I care for my possessions, and you threatened me with one of them." She whispered. Aah. That.

"I didn't mean it-" She wasn't listening. Her breathing did get a bit heavier. "I'm sorry, ok?"

"Nie-" She stopped herself for a moment. "I did find that cute that you decided to be brave for that moment. So I'll tell you this. They're F's." Eh?

I froze and realized she still had my hands on Alex's-

"You're really burning up." Rhia calmly noted as I felt myself passing out.

* * *

 **AN: Poor Jaune. At least there's now only a week before he leaves for Beacon.**


End file.
